Remember Your Family
by Suuz-5-5
Summary: My idea of how to continue from where the finale of season 2 has left us. It's about remembering your family.
1. Chapter 1

**I don't own Crossing Lines! My native language is Dutch and I'm dyslectic so sorry for any mistakes. **

**This is my second Crossing Lines fanfic and will be the first multichapter fanfic. I hope you like it and I will try my best to update regularly, but sometimes school or life interfere with those plans.  
>The big lines for this story are already down and several chapters have already been written. <strong>

**It's a(n almost) direct continuation of the season 2 finale, awaiting season 3. So this could be complete nonsense (probably) by the time we get season 3 (fingers crossed!). **

**And today I discovered Crossing Lines is airing on Dutch TV (our 'new show'), so a perfect time to start this story xP Enjoy!**

_Chapter 1_

Tommy hurried into the police office, trying to find the stuff he needs. He grabbed some ammo and the gun the team had given him for his birthday, the one he treasured a lot. He held it in his hands for a moment before putting it back on his hip. There was no time to waste. He had to go to Spain. Dorn hadn't gotten back to the team and that couldn't mean anything good. Their case was closed so he was free to go. His search for his stuff was stopped by the ringing of his phone. It showed Dorn on the screen. Tommy dropped his bag and answered the phone.

'Have you found her?' It stayed silent on the other side of the line. He could only hear Dorn breathing. 'Sir? Did you find Eva?'

'_No, I didn't, detective McConnel. I'm at sergeant Vittoria's hotel room and it appears to have been ransacked._' Tommy turned to one of the computers, looking up the first flight. It was leaving in two hours from Nice. He knew he could be in Nice in 36 minutes. The word "blood" got his attention back with Dorn.

'Wait! What did you say about blood? There was blood in her room?'

'_Ye.s I said there was blood in her room, but we do not know whether the blood is from sergeant Vittoria. They are gathering the samples as we speak. It was a lot of blood. Are you understand what I'm saying, detective McConnel?_' Tommy ran his hand over his head. He should have tried calling her more times. He should have demanded an explanation on what she was doing there in Spain. '_Detective McConnel?_'

'Yeah, I'm still here, sir. I understand what you're saying. That there is blood, it doesn't mean it's sergeant Vittoria's blood...I'm coming to Spain as we speak.' He started the process of booking a seat on the flight.

'_I suggest you return to The Hague, detective McConnel. There is not much you can do over here. We first need to know what we're looking for..._'

'We're looking for sergeant Vittoria...sir.' Tommy finished the booking and grabbed his bag, heading towards the exit. He knew Eva was somewhere and he was going to find her. Dorn could say whatever he wanted but he knew she was alive. 'I have to go, sir.' Before Dorn could say another word, Tommy hung up the phone. All he needed now was a car to get him to the airport in Nice. He knew it was about a forty-minute drive. His phone started to ring again and Tommy answered once he saw it was Sebastian who was calling.

'You heard already?'

'_Heard what?_'

'Eva is in trouble in Spain. I'm going there now.' Tommy walked on to the street, looking for a car. He heard Sebastian take a deep breath and he stopped what he was doing. 'You're not calling because of Eva, are you? What's going on, Sebastian?'

'_Umm...it's the major, Tommy. He has been shot...and it's not good. He's dead_.' Louis was dead? How the hell did that happen? That's three team members since the team was put together, not even two years ago. Tommy's head couldn't handle that. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. '_But what were you saying about Eva being in trouble?_' It made Tommy come back to reality and getting a car. He really had to find Eva. Especially now.

'Dorn just called me. Eva's room was ransacked and there was blood in the room...a large amount, according to Dorn. It hasn't been matched to Eva, or anyone, yet. Either way I'm heading to Spain.'

'_Me and Arabela will try to come as soon as possible as well. Hickman is with Louis at the moment. He will probably stay to catch doctor Clarke, but we can come. In a couple of hours. Can you meet us at the airport?_'

'I'm already on my way to the airport, Sebastian. I can't wait. I have to find Eva.'

* * *

><p>About six hours later Tommy was once again standing at the airport of Asturias, but he felt so much different. He did feel closer to Eva than when he was still in France. The airport was quiet. Not many people were leaving or arriving at this hour. The muscles in his neck hurt from the uncomfortable flight, but he was in Spain, where he needed to be. Outside the air had cooled down and it was dark. As he threw his bag over his shoulder, he realized he only brought his gun, ammo, ID and some old water. Not much more. It wasn't really convenient packing. Tommy looked out on the road. He knew he had to go to Cudillero, but what would he do once he got there? He needed a plan. Without one he was just going to waste precious time. Coming here wasn't a thought-out plan. Maybe he should have waited for Sebastian and Arabela. They could have formed a plan by now. He rubbed his head, as it was started to pound. He had even forgotten the damn pain meds the doctor had prescribed to him. A short man approached him and started to speak rapidly at him, in what Tommy guessed was Spanish.<p>

'I'm sorry, mate,' he said. 'I don't speak Spanish.'

'Umm...you need taxi, sir?' the man asked and he pointed at the taxi behind them. Tommy looked at the car and then turned back to the man.

'Do you go to Cudillero?'

'Yes, yes! I go to Cudillero!' The taxi driver nodded firmly. He seemed happy and Tommy couldn't really blame the guy. The ride was probably going to cost him quite a lot of money, but it didn't seem like he had another option.

'Do you know where hotel...' Tommy started, trying to think of the name of the hotel. 'Umm...hotel Maravillas del Mar?'

'No...no hotel Maravillas del Mar,' the taxi driver said, shaking his head with a frown. 'But I can find in town. When we get there. No problem, sir. I find it!' Tommy sighed and then got in the car. He wasn't getting anything better at this time. As he sat down he rested his head against the back of the seat, hoping it would get rid of the pounding in his sleep.

'You can sleep, sir,' the taxi driver said. 'I wake you when in Cudillero. No problem, sir!' Tommy closed his eyes, but the images of the entire day were raging through his head and he couldn't get some rest.

* * *

><p>It didn't take the taxi driver long to find Eva's hotel, nor was it hard to get the key to her room. It was actually already available. The owner told him that police had already come to search the room. Tommy ignored the man and headed upstairs. He didn't care how many people had been there. He just needed to see it himself. The corridor seemed the longest he ever walked. His hands were shaking as he stood in front of the door. After a deep breath he opened it. Dorn hadn't been wrong when he said the room had been ransacked. Pillows and sheets were cut up and almost everything had been turned over. Nothing was left untouched. Blood was all over the bed, pieces of the mirror that once hung on the wall, and on the floor.<p>

'Damn, Eva,' Tommy mumbled looking around. A weak smile appeared on his face. It looked like there had been a struggle. He knew Eva wouldn't go down without a fight and it looked like she put up a good one. He looked through the stuff, hoping to find something that would give him an indication of why Eva had stayed in Spain. Her laptop was under her desk, but it looked destroyed. Tommy would need Sebastian for that if they could get something off the laptop. He sighed and looked around in the room once more. They would have to wait for DNA matches to give them more information. For now he was stuck with waiting, which he hated.

* * *

><p>Tommy walked into the hotel that Sebastian and Arabela had booked. As soon as he saw them, he walked over to them and handed Sebastian Eva's laptop. Sebastian looked at it with a serious face. Arabela held a bag in front of him.<p>

'We packed you some stuff,' she told him. 'Since you left in such a hurry. We figured you might have forgotten some essentials.' He took the bag and slung it over his shoulder. Arabela handed him a key as well. 'You're in room six-hundred-four.' Tommy shrugged. He didn't care about his room number. They had arrived; they could do something.

'We should get started,' he told them. 'Eva was in the room but I don't know how long ago...I requested the security tapes to be send to us so we can see if she has been caught on any of the cameras. And we need to figure out why she chose to stay in Spain even though our case was over...we...'

'Tommy, maybe some food first,' Sebastian interrupted his train of thoughts. 'The tapes, the DNA, the computer...it will all take some times before we get some results. We should get some food first. When was the last time you ate anything?'

'And maybe some sleep as well,' Arabela added carefully. 'I believe the last time you slept was in the hospital. You have been up for many hours...' Tommy shook his head.

'No!' he said firmly. 'We need to find Eva! We don't know where she is or what happened to her. We can't just sit, eat and sleep while she is out somewhere.' He started to pace back and forth. 'There needs to be something we can do _now_! We could...we could...' Tommy stopped. He didn't know what they could do at the moment. All he could think of was finding Eva and the raging headache. Arabela put her hand on his arm.

'Tommy, listen to yourself,' she said softly. 'You sound like you're losing it. Rest for a little while. When we are rested, we can continue the search. It doesn't help Eva when we're all run down and exhausted...'

'We already lost enough friends!' Tommy shouted angrily. 'I'm not going to lose Eva as well!' The few people in the lobby turned their heads towards them and Tommy gave them an angry look. They could mind their own damn business. Sebastian sighed.

'I know it's hard losing Louis today...' he said. 'Especially now that Eva is missing, but you need to stay focused and fresh.' Focused? Tommy had never felt more focused in his life. He knew exactly what he needed. Be damned if he didn't get enough hours of sleep. He had worked on very few hours of sleep before and it worked out. But looking at Sebastian and Arabela, he knew they weren't going to give up anytime soon. He took a deep breath and then he nodded.

'Fine,' he said. 'As long as I can pick my own food.' Arabela gave him a little smile, but Tommy ignored it. He headed up to his room. The room looked very neat. Tommy dropped his bag on the bed and lay down on it himself. Sebastian had suggested food but he was not hungry at all. He didn't even bother getting change or anything. He was just going to lie here for a while. He didn't expect sleep to come anytime soon.

**TBC.**

**A big thanks to my sister for taking her time to check this chapter!**


	2. Chapter 2

** I don't own Crossing Lines! My native language is Dutch and I'm dyslectic so sorry for any mistakes. Thank you for your reviews! They always make me happy ^^ The next chapter will be either sooner or later than next Thursday since I'm moving this week and I don't know how my internet situation will be. But for now: enjoy!**

_Chapter 2_

Her head was hurting and she was tempted to keep her eyes closed, in the hope the pounding would lessen. She didn't recognize any sounds or smells. In fact, there were very few sounds around her. Eva opened her eyes. She didn't recognize the room she was in and some fear crept up on her. The bed she was lying on was old and there were sheets on them. It looked decent. As she looked around further in the room, she noticed the walls were neatly painted in white. A bed and a small table with two chairs were the only furniture in her tiny room. A little bit of light entered the room through a small window at the wall at the end of the bed. It was the only source of light. Eva sat up right and waited for the wave of dizziness to pass. When she got up, she walked around the room. The door that was keeping her in the room, felt like heavy wood and she knew she wasn't going to be able to break it open with her bare hands. Eva sighed and ran a hand through her hair. She didn't know where she was. A stack of what appeared to be clothes caught her eyes. When she held it up, she saw it was a clean summer dress and underwear. It confused Eva. Why was this in her room? Her prison? Even more than before she needed to know where she was. Stepping on the bed, Eva managed to lean towards the window, but looking out didn't help her. All she saw were some small stones and a stone wall. Eva stepped off the bed and sat down in one of the chairs. She needed to form a plan. A way to get out of this room or find a way to contact the team. Time had gotten away from her. It was light outside which meant that she hadn't been unconscious for long or she had been unconscious for the entire night. She didn't know and that made her frustrated. She needed to know the time. Just so she could make more sense of it, piece the information together of what she could not remember.

Suddenly there was a sound of a key being put in the lock and Eva stood up. Ready to attack. The door opened and a big muscled guy walked into the room.

'Stand back,' the guy spoke in Italian, but Eva stayed on her spot. She balled her fist as the guy stepped towards her. When he was within hitting range, she threw her fist at him. He didn't even seem shaken by the hit and he pulled his gun. The barrel was pressed against her forehead, pushing her into the wall. Eva held her hands up in defeat, knowing there wasn't anything she could do now. Another man walked into the room, carrying a bowl and a cloth. He glanced at her and then put the bowl and cloth down at the table. The muscled guy dropped his gun and the bowl guy turned to her.

'Wash yourself and wear the dress,' he told her in fluent Italian. 'Clean up and be presentable.'

'Perché?' Eva asked. 'Why do I need to look presentable?'

'Just do it,' he replied angrily and he turned around. Eva watched the door close and she heard him lock the door. She took a deep breath and glanced at the bowl. It was filled with water as she suspected. Her mind wandered to the docks where she was supposed to meet the person.

_Eva walked onto the docks. She stopped and looked around. There was a feeling of something being wrong inside of her. She toyed with the idea of calling someone, calling Tommy. She wanted him to be there. Almost unconsciously Eva started to dial his number._

_ 'Eva?' Tommy sounded worried as he answered her call and she felt bad. She had stayed in Spain without explaining anything. No one knew why she was there._

_ 'Tommy! I need you to come here.' It left her mouth before she had thought it over. It was what she wanted: she wanted him to be here, next to her. As her back-up while she was meeting this mysterious person._

_ 'What's wrong? Where are you? Spain?' He sounded even more worried now._

_ 'Yeah. Someone sent me a note.' She decided to be honest with him. She was getting closer to the meeting point and someone had to know. Someone had to be here and she wanted it to be Tommy. 'He wants to meet me today, but he told me to come alone. I need someone to be here.' _

_ 'What are you talking about? Who? Who sent you a note? Eva, I'm at a crime scene here: there were two cops shot in Marseille.' Eva cursed at herself for calling Tommy. They had an important case. Two dead cops were never easy and took priority. He was right to question her. _

_ 'Right, sorry to bother you.'_

_ 'No, look, that's not what I meant...' He had to go back to work. Focus on catching the killer of two cops. Not talking to her. She could handle herself. It was just a meet. She just wanted Tommy to be with her. Not for back-up. Just because it was him._

_ 'Listen, I can handle this alone, okay?'_

_ 'I'll find a way to come.' Eva was silent for a short moment. Even with the case, he wanted to come to her. It gave her a strange, but nice feeling. The meeting point came into her view and she dreaded having to hang up. She wanted to listen to his voice._

_ 'I've got to go now. It's almost time.' Before Tommy could say anything that would change her mind or make her stop, Eva hung up the phone and put it back in her pocket._

Eva felt angry with herself for hanging up on Tommy. Even though she still felt his case was important. If only she had waited. Then she wouldn't be sitting here in this small room. She wondered if Tommy had gone to Spain like he said. If he already knew she was gone. What if he was looking through town, trying to find her? She didn't even know if she was still in Cudillero. All she knew was that the guy who gave her the bowl was Italian. She sighed and tried to remember more of what happened after she was on the docks. She remembered staying at the docks, waiting for a long time, but she couldn't remember anyone showing up. No one ever showed up. It was stupid to think someone would show up. The note was strange and the guy handing it to her had disappeared without a trace. She felt stupid for even going there alone. Eva remembered that after about an hour she had gone back to her hotel room. From there her mind went blank. She couldn't remember what happened when she arrived back at the hotel. She did have bruises, scrapes and cuts on her body so she figured she had been in a struggle in her hotel room. But the struggle could have happened somewhere else as well. Some of her cuts had been taken care of. Her hand was bandaged and she didn't feel pain in it. Someone wanted to take care of her. Just like the dress that was in her room. The raging headache would be logical after a struggle and it could explain the memory loss. She wanted to remember, but she couldn't. The last pieces didn't connect. She didn't remember how she went from the hotel to this small room.

Several loud knocks on the door made Eva jump. She stared at the door, worried of who would walk in, but no one did.

'Get cleaned up and dressed!' It was the voice of the muscled guy. Eva glanced at the dress. 'Your visitor is waiting.' Visitor? Who could this visitor be? Maybe the visitor could give her some answers. Eva grabbed the cloth and dapped it into the water. The lukewarm water felt nice on her skin. Trying to be thorough but quick, Eva freshened herself up. The fabric of the dress felt old and in a strange way it had something familiar. It was a knee-length summer dress. Not something Eva would pick out, but it wasn't an ugly dress. As she held it up, Eva remembered that the man had known she wasn't dressed yet. Her mind immediately went to a camera being there. She needed to find a way to get dressed without showing too much of herself. Her hands began to shake. She didn't want to do this. She didn't want to have to think about guys watching her. About being locked up.

* * *

><p>Eva changed into the dress with the use of the sheet. It hadn't been easy, but she would be rather be difficult than getting dressed with guys possibly watching her. The dress was light and flowy. It made Eva very self-conscious. She felt uncomfortable no longer wearing her own clothes, which were lying in a pile next to the bed. Now she had to wait for her visitor. It felt like all she was doing was waiting right now. Wasting time.<p>

The door got unlocked and the muscle guy walked back in, carrying a tray with a tin mug and a plate with food. Without a word, he placed it on the table. Eva watched his movements. They seemed calm; as if it was normal giving food to a person they were holding. He left quickly after putting everything down. However, before he left, he took Eva's old clothes and the bowl with him. The door was locked when he was out of the room. Eva looked at the food. It was some plain bread and some unidentifiable gooey mass. There seemed to be water in the mug. She was unsure she could take it. They had taken care of her wounds and of furnishing the room, but what if that was just to get her off guard? Just so they could end up poisoning her with food.

Eva quickly turned around to the door when she heard it being opened again. When she saw the person behind the door, she felt her legs go weak. She felt shock.

'Ciao, mia figlia.'

**TBC.**


	3. Chapter 3

**I don't own Crossing Lines! My native language is Dutch and I'm dyslectic so sorry for any mistakes. Thank you for the reviews!**

**I have to say that all Italian or Spanish in this chapter (and all the chapters after this one) is with the help of Google Translate, which isn't perfect, but I don't speak a word Italian or Spanish (I didn't get further than learning Dutch & English and some French xD). So I apologize when it's wrong or makes no sense at all!**

**Look cdub77: I got you hint hint nudge nudge wink wink loud and clear, therefore a new chapter, still on time ;-P**

_Chapter 3_

'Papà?' Eva stumbled in shock. With a smile on his face, her father walked into the small room. Two men followed him inside, standing guard next to the door. Eva stared at her father as he sat down on one of the chair. She hadn't been seeing ghosts. It had been her father who she had seen in Cudillero. But how? Her father was supposed to be dead. She buried him years ago. She mourned him and visited his grave. How could he still be alive?

'Mia bella figlia,' her father said, looking at her, 'what have they done to you.' His voice sounded so familiar. It had a calming effect on her. She had longed to hear his voice. Even after she discovered how he had earned his money. He had been her father and he had been gone so suddenly. There had never been a chance for a goodbye. Many times she wanted to get the chance to speak to him one last time. To ask him why.

'What are you doing, papà?' she asked him. 'Why couldn't you just come to me? How are you still alive? I buried you!' Tears were stinging in her eyes, threatening to fall. Once more she would be crying for her father. But she had to push the emotions away. She needed answers.

'They have poisoned you against me,' her father told her. 'Against me and your family. Your head has been filled by lies. You forgot your loyalty! Your loyalty needs to be with this family!' Eva couldn't believe her ears. He was talking about loyalty to her? He left her, thinking she had lost her parents. She had done wrong? He had been wrong all this time!

'There was never loyalty in this family!' she shouted. 'I chose to do the right thing! I chose to help people!' Suddenly her father's hand connected with her cheek and it felt a burning sensation.

'Mi dispiace, but you need to remember your place,' he said angrily and he calmly placed his hands on the table. 'You need to remember where you belong.' Eva rubbed her cheek, still trying to comprehend what her father was telling her. The slap had shocked her. Her father had never raised his hand at her when she was young. He had always been a kind soul. Always patient and understanding. Tears were silently rolling over her face. She had no words for him.

'You will remember, mia figlia,' her father said and with those words, that threat, he left the room. His guys following him right away. Eva was left behind in her confusion.

* * *

><p>The sun started to light the world around him but the warmth of the rays didn't seem to reach him. Tommy was staring out of the window, looking out over Cudillero. There were only a few people on the street, probably on their way to work. He had hardly gotten any sleep. His mind kept going over and over the possibilities. His mind was filled with worry. Right now he was back to waiting. Waiting till Sebastian and Arabela woke up. Somehow they had gotten some sleep and were taking their time waking up. Tommy stood up from the chair and paced around in his room. His head was bothering him and he hated that he had left his pain medication. Arabela hadn't put it in his bag, because he still needed to get it from the pharmacy. But in a way his headache kept him awake. Aware of what was going on around him. He went over the last phone call with Eva in his head over and over again.<p>

_Tommy's phone started ringing in the middle of the case where Arabela and him were trying to figure out how it didn't feel right. His phone showed it was Eva who was calling him and he needed to answer it. He needed to speak to Eva. Figure out what was happening._

_ 'Eva?' he answered as he stepped away from Arabela and the crime scene._

_ 'Tommy, I need you to come here.' Her breathing was heavy, as if she had been running. There was a hint of desperation in her voice, something he hadn't heard very often with Eva._

_ 'What's wrong? Where are you? Spain?' He needed answers from her. There was nothing more that he wanted than going to her, but for that he needed answers, an explanation. _

_ 'Yeah, someone sent me a note. He wants to meet me today but he told me to be alone. I need someone here.' It sure sounded like she was in trouble, but it didn't make sense to him. He didn't even know why she was there and even if he did, he couldn't come. Cudillero was at least five hours away and the team had an ongoing case here._

_ 'What are you talking about? Who? Who sent you a note? Eva, I'm at a crime scene here: there were two cops shot in Marseille.' _

_ 'Right, sorry to bother you.' Tommy closed his eyes, angry with himself for just saying that. She called him because she needed him and he was blowing her off because of the case. Yes it was important, but she was important to him as well. _

_ 'No, look, that's not what I meant...' She didn't give him a chance to explain._

_ 'Listen, I can handle this alone, okay?' _No, it's not_, was the first thing he thought. It was not okay that she was alone, needing to handle whatever 'this' was. _

_ 'I'll find a way to come.' It was the best thing he could offer her now_

_ 'I've got to go now. It's almost time.' Before Tommy could even speak one more word the connection was severed. She had hung up on him. He put his phone down but he couldn't relax. There had been something in her voice...it was fear. He looked at his phone and then hit redial. After getting no answer, he tried over and over again._

The things that were strongest of Tommy's memories were her worried voice and the pain he had felt after trying over and over to reach her. He rubbed his forehead, wanting the headache to be gone. His doctor had told him firmly to take it easy. Tommy was pretty sure that going abruptly to Spain without his medication was not what his doctor had meant. But he had to. He couldn't wait. It had already taken him too long. He had failed her. He wasn't there with her when she needed him. That was what he was supposed to do. That's why they had a team: to have each other's backs.

* * *

><p>It took Tommy too long, but around seven a.m. Sebastian and Arabela woke up, calling him to meet them in the breakfast room. Tommy mainly watched them eat their breakfast, only taking a bite when they were looking. Food didn't taste like anything and he wasn't hungry. He wanted to begin. He was glad that breakfast didn't take long and with cups of coffee in their hands, Tommy, Sebastian and Arabela headed into town. They didn't have much to go on, so they decided to just go ask people if they had seen Eva.<p>

'Sorry...umm...' Tommy stopped an elderly lady on one of the many streets of Cudillero. He showed the woman a picture of Eva. 'La..ummm...has visto?' The woman shook her head and said something in Spanish, but his knowledge stopped with about the sentence 'la has visto' that Arabela had taught him before they left the hotel. Right now it was getting him nowhere. He sighed and continued walking down the street. He wondered if Eva had been doing the same: walking around the street, looking for something.

'Sorry...la has visto?' Tommy asked another stranger on the street, once again showing Eva's picture. This man shook his head as well. She had been in Cudillero for three days and no one seemed to have seen her. How was that possible? Cudillero wasn't that big. Someone had to have seen her! His train of thoughts was cut off when his phone started ringing.

'What?'

'Tommy, it's Arabela. I found a waiter who has seen Eva. He works at cafe Las Tres Flores. It's on the square. Sebastian is already on his way.' _Finally, someone who has seen her!_

'I'm on my way!' He put his phone back in his pocket and turned around, trying to figure out where the hell he was and how he was supposed to get to the square. He ran into the direction the man left in. When he saw the man, Tommy took a little sprint.

'Sorry, I have one more question,' he said to the man, holding one finger up. The man nodded at him. 'Do you know where Las Tres Flores is? Las Tres Flores?' The man nodded again and he pointed down the street. 'Straight down this street?' The man gave another nod and spoke rapid Spanish. Tommy smiled at the man. 'Gracias!' It was about bloody time they were getting somewhere!

* * *

><p>'She came in the morning,' the waiter, Frisco Garcia, told Tommy, Arabela and Sebastian and he pointed at a table, 'and sat there all day. I had to ask her to leave because we were closing. She still asked if she could stay at the table.'<p>

'How long ago was this?' Sebastian asked.

'I guess about...' Frisco started and he shouted something in Spanish towards another waitress. She replied and Frisco turned back to them. 'She's saying it was about two or three days ago. She didn't move from her seat all day.' Tommy walked over to the table. The waiter followed him and pointed at one of the chairs. 'This was the seat she was sitting on the entire time.' Without a word Tommy sat down and he looked around. What was she looking for? There was a lot to see. People and cars were walking past him; there was a fountain and movement from the other cafes. It probably wasn't even like the time Eva was sitting here. Tommy leaned into the chair, staring in front of him, imagining Eva did the same a couple days ago. He needed to know what she had been waiting for. He closed his eyes. Partly because of his raging headache, but also because he tried to remember everything from the phone call. Everything that had happened with regard to Eva during the last week, but it was hard to piece everything together. A lot had happened and he knew he was missing information. She had told him she was okay almost each time they talked over the phone. Each time he wasn't convinced but he just went with it.

'She called me three days ago,' Sebastian suddenly said and Tommy looked up at him. 'Eva wanted me to digitally age a photo she sent to me.' He started to dig in his pocket for his phone. 'I could have a picture of it on my phone. Otherwise it will be on my computer back at the hotel.'

'A photo of whom?' Arabela asked.

'Umm, a man,' Sebastian answered and he started to go through his phone. Tommy cursed. A photo of a man: sounded like a big detail to suddenly forget. They could have used that while they were looking for Eva.

'Couldn't you have told us this earlier' he asked annoyed. 'We have been running around town when there might be a bloody picture of the guy she is looking for.'

'I'm sorry, Tommy,' Sebastian said. 'I must have forgotten. A lot happened...She didn't tell me who the guy was...wait, here it is.' He showed Tommy the picture. It was an older man: mid sixty with a beard. Tommy had never seen the guy before and he wondered why she was looking for him.

* * *

><p>The light in Sebastian's room was bothering Tommy. Maybe it was all light. He didn't know. He just wanted to find something on their mystery guy. The waiter hadn't known who the man was. None of the staff did, or anyone in town. Half of them hadn't even bothered to look at the picture.<p>

'Tommy, don't you want some food?' Arabela asked him and she held a bread basket in front of him. He shook his head. 'You should eat something...one piece.' He stared at her. She was negotiating with him as if he was a kid. But then he decided to not bother and he grabbed a piece, looking straight at her as he took a bite out of the bread. It actually wasn't bad bread and he discovered he actually was hungry. As he reached for another piece, he couldn't help but see Arabela smiling from the corner of his eye. The hotel door opened and Sebastian walked into the room, with a sour look on his face.

'What did Hickman say?' Tommy asked. 'Did they find the bloody doctor yet?'

'Not yet,' Sebastian answered and he sat down on the bed. 'They do have a lead about where she is heading and she is cut off from her known bank accounts. Every police department in Europe has her picture.'

'That sounds promising,' Arabela said. 'Why the face?'

'Hickman also said that Rebecca wants to bury Louis,' Sebastian answered. 'She needs the closure and Hickman said that she wanted him reunited with their son.'

'When is the funeral?' Arabela asked.

'Rebecca mentioned two days...'

'Shite...two bloody days?!' Tommy exclaimed angrily. 'Does she even know what we're doing? That Eva is missing?' Sebastian nodded. 'Why the hell is she rushing it then? We should get a chance to say goodbye to him as well!'

'It has only been one year since they lost their son and now she lost her husband...' Sebastian said. 'It could be she just wants to grieve and needs a funeral for that...but you're right. It doesn't give us much time.'

'Well, I don't...I'm not going back until we find Eva,' Tommy said. 'If that means I miss the major's funeral...'

'I think the major would rather have us find Eva than having us at his funeral,' Arabela told them. Tommy took a deep, angry breath. He started pacing and then threw his fist against the wall. Now they were going to miss their chance to say goodbye to their boss. Eva would again lose someone without getting the chance to say goodbye. Suddenly there was a hand on his shoulder and Tommy turned around, looking right at Sebastian.

'Tommy, calm down,' he said. 'You're going to be exhausted if you keep it up with all this anger. Did you get some food yet? Some rest?' Tommy pushed Sebastian's arm off his shoulder.

'I had some damn bread and I don't need some rest,' he said. He headed back to the window and stared outside. Over the houses he could see the sea and the boats floating calmly in the water. He kept looking at the water and he opened the window. Sounds rushed into the room and Tommy dug in his memory.

'Eva was at the docks when she called me,' he then said. 'She was going to meet someone there...by herself. We need to go to the docks!'

**TBC.**


	4. Chapter 4

**I don't own Crossing Lines! My native language is Dutch and I'm dyslectic so sorry for any mistakes. Thank you for the reviews! I'm glad you're liking the story! Sorry for the small delay: moving out took a lot of my time.**

_Chapter 4_

Their visit to the docks had been short. It had been the same with the people of the town: no one had seen Eva at the docks, but Sebastian did manage to get the surveillance tapes of the place. Hadn't been easy but with the three of them all showing their badges, they got a copy of the tapes.

'Is it ready yet?' Tommy asked. 'How long does it take for your bloody laptop to start?'

'A little patience, Tommy,' Sebastian replied and he started the tapes. It showed Eva walking at the docks, with the phone in her hands, and then sitting down. Then it was just Eva waiting there.

'What does she have in her hands?' Arabela asked and Sebastian paused the video.

'It's the note she got,' Tommy answered. 'She told me over the phone that she got a note from a man, which told her to come there and wait. Play the rest of the video.' Sebastian nodded and pressed play. An hour after Eva had arrived, she got up and left the docks. The mysterious person hadn't showed up for the meet. But there was some relief: Eva seemed okay in the video. Maybe a little nervous and impatient, but physically she seemed fine, and that was a relief to Tommy.

'Did you get the tapes from the hotel as well?' he asked Sebastian, who nodded and pulled the video up right away.

'I went through them last night,' he said, 'but couldn't make much of it. It shows Eva walking into the building. Nothing after that. She didn't walk out...' Tommy took a deep breath. It wasn't very realistic that she had left her room on her own, but somewhere he had hoped for it.

'Does it show any suspicious people walking in?' Arabela asked.

'No,' Sebastian answered, 'and the problem is that there is a back entrance, but there are no tapes for the camera there. Whoever took Eva from her room could have come and left through the back entrance without anyone being suspicious of them.' Tommy cursed. He had really hoped they would get something from the tapes. Something that they could go from. But it was as if they were back at the beginning. They kept going back. It had been at least 24 hours since Eva went missing. 24 hours and they had been running around, getting nothing. Meanwhile their boss was dead and Hickman was running around trying to catch the crazy doctor who had killed the major. Everything the team was doing ended with going back to the beginning, not even getting close to the end. A hand rested on his shoulder and Tommy turned.

'Here, take it,' Arabela said and she handed him a glass of water and two pills. 'They're painkillers. Not as strong as your doctor prescribed, but they should help.' He looked questioningly at her. How did she know he was having a headache? She gave him a little smile. 'You have been rubbing your head on and off all day.' Tommy put the pills in his mouth and swallowed them with the water.

'Maybe we should call Hickman and see if he can talk to Dorn,' Sebastian suggested. 'I know Dorn isn't answering my calls and he isn't even in Spain right now.' Dorn had left Spain even before Tommy arrived in Spain. It was as if Dorn didn't even care about Eva. He had been the first in Eva's room, but he wasn't there now.

'I will call him,' Tommy said and he grabbed his phone. It didn't take Hickman long to answer his phone.

'_How is the search going, Tommy?_'

'Not too well. How is yours for the crazy doctor going?'

'_Not too well either. We have some leads to go on. We must keep going. Is there a reason you're calling me, Tommy?_'

'Yes... could you try to call Dorn for us? He isn't answering Sebastian's calls and we think you would have more luck. He wasn't here when I arrived. He told us he would get her, being very determined about it, but right now it doesn't feel like he's trying very hard.'

'_Don't judge too quickly. Dorn always has his own plan. He will come through. However, I will call him and get some answers from him._'

'Thank you, Hickman. And good luck with the doctor.'

'_You too, and Tommy: be careful. You don't know what's going on.' _Yeah, that was the problem: not knowing, Tommy thought as Hickman hung up. He put his phone away and turned to Arabela and Sebastian, who were looking at the docks' surveillance again.

'I'm going back to Eva's hotel,' he told them. 'See if I can find something else there.'

* * *

><p>The hotel had something familiar by now. Tommy walked into the lobby and received a little nod from the man behind the desk. He took it as permission and continued walking. Towards the back entrance. It led to a small alley, where some recycling bins were kicked over. There were droplets of blood on the floor, as if someone had been bleeding while he or she walked away. It told Tommy that their suspicions had been right: whoever took Eva, took her out of the back entrance. Someone behind him started to talk in Spanish and Tommy turned around startled.<p>

'Sorry, I don't speak Spanish,' he told the woman. She smiled and put the trash bags on the ground.

'Can I help you, sir?' she asked him. 'Are you here because of the woman from the trashed room?'

'Yes, I am,' Tommy answered. 'And maybe you can help me. Can you remember anything from that day? Strange visitors to the hotel? Sounds from the room...sounds of the struggle? And why are there no cameras in this alley?' The attitude of the woman changed right away; more alert. He noticed her hesitation to answer.

'The cameras in the alley haven't been working for some time,' she then spoke. 'For half a year or so. The boss never had any money in the budget to fix them...and I do not remember anything from that day.' Tommy sighed.

'Look...I won't tell your boss you said anything,' he assured her, hoping it would make her talk. 'You won't get into trouble if you help me. I just want to find her...she is in trouble. She's my friend...' The woman clearly was conflicted...like other people had seemed as well. Tommy grabbed his phone and showed her the picture of Eva's mystery man. 'Do you recognize him?' Right away the woman shook her head.

'The woman showed me this picture as well,' she told him. 'She was looking for him. I don't know him...but it might be why she got into trouble...'

'What do you mean?'

'Well...some people don't want to be found. Maybe he wasn't happy with her search for him...look, I have to get back to work. Otherwise I won't be able to leave work early...I really have to go. I'm sorry I haven't been able to help you much more...'

'Okay, thank you.' He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a piece of paper on which he quickly wrote his number. 'If you...or any of the other employers remember something about that day, the woman or just something, call me.' The woman took the piece of paper and stuffed it in her pocket. Then she quickly left the alley.

* * *

><p>The room seemed to get smaller and smaller as time passed. Eva was sitting at the table. An empty plate and mug were in front of her. They had given her bread with some oil and water for her breakfast. The hunger was too strong to think about anything else than eating. The food indicated to Eva that they didn't want her dead. Not yet at least. The good side of that was that the team had time to find her. They had to have figure out she was gone, by now. She felt stupid for keeping the contact with them minimal. If she had told one of them something...but she had kept her mouth shut. Fearing that they would call her crazy. She never made it a secret that her parents were dead.<p>

Her father hadn't returned after his reveal last night. A reveal that still left her confused. Eva needed answers, such as how it could be that he was still alive. The police had been sure both her parents had died in the burned-out car. She had asked them repeatedly. DNA had been collected from the bodies and matched with her parents' DNA. Somehow her father had survived. If he had even been in the car at the moment it exploded. It always had been strange to Eva that Conti had placed a bomb in the car. He and her father were business partners, friends. He had been to their house so many times for dinners and parties. She remembered all the pain and grief she felt over her dead father, even when she discovered his crimes. He always been good to her. A great father who always took care of her. Now she was sitting here as a prisoner of her father. She swallowed away the tears she felt coming up. There was no way she was going to cry for him. She closed her eyes and let her mind wander to someone else. It wandered towards Tommy and the rest of the team. She remembered the tension in his voice. He said he was working on a case where two cops were killed. Those were always bad. Would they have solved the case?

* * *

><p>Just when Eva was on the edge of sleep, the door was thrown open with a loud bang and it woke her up completely. She jumped up from the bed but before she could do anything, two big guys rushed over to her, grabbing her arms. Their grip was firm and none of her struggles made them loosen the grip.<p>

'What do you want?' she shouted at them but they stayed silent. Another man walked in: leaner than the other two. He was wearing a nice suit. His face scared Eva: his look was so angry and it was directed at her. Without saying anything he walked into the room and he sat down on one of the chairs. The two goons pushed Eva to her knees, facing the angry man. From his pocket he pulled a picture and he held it in front of her face.

'Look at it,' he told her firmly in Italian, like all the others that had spoken to her in this place. The picture showed a man about her age, smiling at the camera with a sun-kissed skin. Eva looked up from the picture, directly at the man. What did he want? He stared right into her eyes. 'That boy in the picture...that is my son, Enrico. The happiness in the picture is so clear...but that happiness is no longer there. Because you...' He pointed at her. 'You killed him!'

'I never met that man!' Eva told him. The man gave a nod and one of the goons punched her in her face. Eva spit out the blood that filled her mouth.

'Do not speak about my son!' the angry man yelled. 'You helped the policia. You helped them find my boy and shoot him point blank in the head...just because they said he was a criminal. He was just a boy!' A shiver went through Eva's body as the man's voice became louder. He put the picture down on the table and pulled another picture out of his pocket. Another one of a man, looking similar as Enrico. 'That is my other son Francesco...' Eva stared at the picture. This one she did recognize. She remembered this man. The angry man slammed the picture on the table. 'He'll be spending the rest of his life in jail because you deemed him worthy of cuffs around his writs! The rest of his life! Do you know what that even means?' Another picture was put in front of her. This time it was a family picture. His sons with their wives and five little children. 'They have to live without husbands and fathers! My sons are needed! You had no right!'

'They committed a cri...' Eva was unable to finish her sentence as another punch hit her in her face. Her head snapped back, hurting her neck, and she felt dizzy. Focusing on the angry man was hard for a few moments. Just when he came back into focus, another punch landed onto the ribs, knocking the wind out of her. Eva started to cough, trying to catch her breath. The angry man grabbed her hair to pull her head towards him.

'You're not allowed to speak to me!' he yelled into her face. 'You should be ashamed of what you have done to your family name! You're not worthy of the Vittoria name! You're the worst filth there is on this earth! Turning towards the policia instead of your family!' He pushed her head back and she fell to the floor. Before she could get up, the two goons started kicking and punching her. All Eva could do was curl up and try to protect herself the best she could. Pain went through her entire body and it didn't seem to end, but it did. Eva looked up and pushed herself into a sitting position, using the wall as support. Breathing was hard and painful and her head was spinning. The angry man crouched in front of her and leaned in.

'You will suffer for what you have done to my sons,' he threatened her whispering. He got up and stood in front of her. Eva glanced sideling at him, fearing what he would do next. Slimy wetness hit her face and as she touched it, she realized it was spit.

'Sporcizia!' he told her angrily and turned around, leaving the room. Eva wiped all the spit off and allowed herself to cry, for the first time in this room. She needed the team to find her, soon. For she wasn't sure how long she would last.

**TBC.**


	5. Chapter 5

**I don't own Crossing Lines! My native language is Dutch and I'm dyslectic so sorry for any mistakes. Thank you for the reviews!**

_Chapter 5_

Tommy was awoken by a knock on his door. It confused him for a moment because he had not realized he had fallen asleep. He needed a moment to look around before registering that he should open the door. Arabela and Sebastian were both standing there.

'Hickman just called and he's on his way to Italy,' Arabela told him, before he got the chance to ask. Italy? Why was Hickman going to Italy? 'He expects us to be there in the morning as well.' She and Sebastian walked into the room and Tommy noticed they were carrying their bags and suitcases.

'Why are we going to Italy?' Tommy asked confused. They should be here.

'Well, Hickman was able to contact Dorn, who gave him some information,' Arabela answered. 'He didn't say what the information was, but it would indicate Eva being in Italy.' Tommy gave her a short nod and looked around for his bag. It was Sebastian who handed it to him. He actually didn't need to pack. He never bothered to unpack when he had arrived. They could go right away.

'What about doctor Clarke?' Sebastian asked when they were making their way down to the lobby to get checked out. 'What did Hickman say about her?' Arabela shrugged.

'He said nothing about that case,' she answered. 'It was a short phone call. He was in a hurry.' Tommy sighed. As much as he would love Hickman's help with finding Eva, leaving the major's case didn't feel right. That crazy doctor couldn't just go free. Not after shooting the major, killing him. The three of them could go after Dorn's information and Hickman could stay focused on catching the doctor. She needed to pay for what she had done. All of this was giving him a big headache and he rubbed his temples.

'Tommy, are you okay?' Arabela asked worried and he shrugged.

'Yeah, I'm fine. I'm going to wait outside while you two deal with checking out.' He didn't wait for their reply and walked out of the hotel. The air had cooled as the evening had set in. He took a deep breath and leaned against the outer wall of the hotel. They were going backwards. This had started in Italy. Eva's little holiday, which had led to their baptize case and had led them to Spain. Now they went from Spain back to Italy. Only a week had passed, but it felt strangely long ago. So much had happened.

'Ready to go, Tommy?' Sebastian asked as he laid his hand on Tommy's shoulder. Tommy gave a short nod. He was more than ready to go.

* * *

><p>With every breath she took a cutting pain went through Eva's ribs. Her head was hurting as well and she was glad there was no mirror to look in. She just knew her face would look so awful with the bruises. No one had come after the visit of the angry man and Eva didn't mind. She enjoyed the quietness and took the time to get some rest. Her body was on edge and sleep wasn't really coming to her, but the lying on the bed felt good. As long as she barely moved. A key slit in the lock and the door opened. Eva pushed herself up, suppressing a groan. Her father walked inside, holding an ice pack. He actually came into the room with an ice pack. He held it out to her but she slapped it away. She was not going to take anything from him.<p>

'Come on, mia figlia,' he said softly to her. It was in a way that reminded her of how he had spoken to her as a little girl, when she was sick and needed to eat some of the soup. Eva looked up at him. 'It's just to make you feel better. It will ease the pain.' Eva took the ice pack and held it against her face. At first the cold was painful but it felt good against the bruises. Her eyes stayed on her father who was watching her. Just standing there and watching her hold an ice pack against her head. Another man walked in the room. As he got closer to her, Eva tried to back away. Unfortunately there wasn't much room to go anywhere and the movement hurt her ribs.

'I'm not going to hurt you,' the man assured her. 'I'm a doctor...I just want to help you. I put the bandage on your hand. The cuts looked like they hurt.' Eva looked down at her bandaged hand. The doctor extended his hand. 'Can I take a look at you?'

'Okay,' Eva answered hesitantly and this time when he moved towards her, she stayed seated. He took the icepack away and pressed the bruises gently, examining her face.

'Nothing seems broken, Don Vittoria,' the doctor said to her father and Eva stared at her father. It had been only after his death that she had found out where her father's money came from and she had never heard someone call him Don before. It had never dawned on her that her father actually was the head of a mafia family until that doctor spoke those words. Once again she was reminded of the pain when she found out about the lies.

'Buono,' her father nodded. 'You can leave then.'

'I would like to check her hand as well,' the doctor said. 'If you allow me to, Don Vittoria.' Her father gave a short nod and the doctor turned back to her hand. 'It won't hurt.' He treated her so kindly. It confused Eva. She winced as he removed the bandage and she could see the cuts on her hand. They didn't look pretty and Eva remembered the cutting pain from when she had grabbed a mirror piece. She had stabbed someone with it...one of the men who had attacked her in her room. She had stabbed one of the men right before they overpowered her.

'It looks okay,' the doctor said, pulling Eva out her thoughts and he started to put a clean bandage on it. 'Try to keep it clean and dry...'

'Are you finished yet, medico?' Eva's father asked impatiently and the doctor got up from the bed. Eva watched his face closely as he was facing her father. There was some dislike on his face but mostly fear. Something she did not remember on the faces of the people who spoke to her father. In her memory everyone loved her father.

Her father's loud voice made her look at him. 'Then you can leave the room!' The doctor left quickly without another word and Eva was left alone with her father.

* * *

><p>'Dorn told me that when Eva called she spoke about looking for a ghost. He is sure this meant that she is looking for her father,' Hickman told the others. Arabela, Tommy and Sebastian didn't get much time to actually arrive in Grosseto. As soon as they met up with Hickman, he wanted to get started. Tommy had no problem with that. It may have been a long travel to the city, but he rather spent his time useful.<p>

'But her father died,' Sebastian noted. 'Both her parents are dead. Several years.'

'Dorn seemed certain that this was about her father,' Hickman assured them. 'He reached out to several of his contacts to see if it was possible and they confirmed that it could be possible that Giovanni Vittoria did not die in the car explosion. They suspected he is alive. It's just that the proof is missing.'

'Giovanni Vittoria was the head of his own mafia family,' Sebastian said, as he was reading on his computer. 'Why would he fake his own death? He was a serious business man, doing well.'

'It had been Nicola Conti who killed her father,' Tommy noted. 'She said they were business partners. Maybe Eva's father felt the threat of his competitors and decided to get away from them.' Leaving Eva all by herself, thinking her parents were dead, Tommy added that in his mind.

'What happened to the Vittoria family?' Arabela asked. 'Could it be Eva was after them and not her father? That that was what she meant by chasing a ghost?'

'According to Dorn the Vittoria family split up in several other families when Giovanni Vittoria died,' Hickman answered. 'But the activities have changed within the families and Dorn seems convinced that it is Giovanni Vittoria we're looking for.'

'So why would he take his own daughter?' Tommy asked. As he asked the question, the answer began to form in his head. 'She joined the anti-mafia taskforce...' Hickman nodded.

'And the mafia doesn't like it when their own people turn against them,' he added. Tommy ran his hand over his head.

'Don't they usually kill the ones who betray them?' Arabela asked worried. 'Wouldn't that then mean...that we are...looking for her body?' Tommy shook his head violently.

'She's alive,' he said firmly.

'Tommy could be right,' Hickman said slowly. Tommy glared at him. Could be? He was right. Eva was still alive. Hickman's glare back told him to be silent and that he wasn't finished. 'It could be that her father uses her as an example. That even his own daughter won't be spared if she goes against him...' An example...not spared? That would mean he was punishing her for what she had done. He was doing who knows what to her and they were standing here, not even sure if they were in the right city.

'We have to find her,' Tommy mumbled.

* * *

><p>Eva's father was still in the room with her, sitting at the table. Eva sat on the bed herself, not wanting to be near the man. He was calmly eating some bread and fruit and drinking what Eva guessed to be wine that his men had brought in. She didn't understand him. His death hadn't been easy on her, especially with the lies that she discovered afterwards, but seeing him in front of her, was even worse. She didn't understand why. Why had he faked his own death? And if he faked his death...was her mother then...'<p>

'What about my mother?' she asked, speaking up after hours of silent staring. 'Is she alive as well?' Her father looked up at her and got up from his seat. He sat down on the bed and reached for her hand. She didn't give him the chance to hold it, bringing it to her chest. He took a deep breath.

'Tua madre...' he started. He took his time to answer her. 'She was with me that day...we were going to the city to have lunch together. She was in the car with me...right beside me when I remembered I forgot something. The driver turned around and just when I got out of the car...it exploded...' Eva fought against the tears and bit her lip. Her father had his eyes on her and they were burning into her own. 'Tua madre...she was inside of that exploding car...almost outside of the car, following me inside...but she was too late. It wasn't the explosion that killed her...not right away. She was lying on the ground...gasping...gasping for air. Her lungs were filled with blood instead, spitting it out...'

'Stop,' Eva mumbled but her father ignored her.

'I held her in my arms and wasn't able to do anything to ease the pain...she was in such pain...in agony and all I could do was hold her...and you know what she said...what she asked? She asked for you.' The tears escaped from her eyes and Eva broke down.

'Per favore...stop...' she cried.

'She asked for her daughter...' her father continued, forcing her to listen to his words. 'But you weren't there. Tua madre died without you but wanting nothing else but you...You were the very last thing she thought about when she died. Your name was the last thing she spoke while gasping for breath..and you weren't there! I was there to watch her die! I was there!' There was nothing but anger in her father's eyes. No pain from the memory. Just anger. Her father stood up and turned away from her. He walked over to the table and calmly drank wine.

'You know,' he then started, turning back to Eva. 'It's better that tua madre is dead.' Eva stared at him, not knowing where he was going with this and it scared her. 'This would have put her in even more pain...knowing that you betrayed your own familia!'

**TBC.**


	6. Chapter 6

**I don't own Crossing Lines! My native language is Dutch and I'm dyslectic so sorry for any mistakes. Thank you for the reviews!**

_Chapter 6_

In the morning the team went to the local police where they were welcomed and given a room to work from in the precinct. The local police couldn't give them much beside that it had been quiet in the area. Nothing new about the Vittoria crime family. Like it had been for years now. They had heard about activities but never in their jurisdiction. So the locals weren't much help to the team and they headed into the room.

'We have a match,' Sebastian announced once he had set up his computers. 'Some of the blood in the hotel room matched Eva's DNA, but other matched with Giosuè Palermo. He's thirty-five years old and is known with the police for doing business with the Vittoria family back in the day.'

'Okay, let's find this caffler,' Tommy said, ready to finally get some answers.

'Tommy, wait,' Sebastian said, stopping Tommy from walking out of the room. Tommy turned to the tech. 'Palermo is already here…he was found dead yesterday. The body was dumped just outside the city. Medical Examiner says he bled to death from several deep cuts in his leg, torso and neck.' Tommy tried to picture the hotel room and felt relief, as Palermo's death was a good explanation for the large amount of blood in the room. Which could mean Eva wasn't badly hurt when she had left the room. The blood had been a worry to him, but now he could leave that be. He was pulled from his thoughts by Hickman who called his name. Hickman, Arabela and Sebastian were all looking at him.

'Are you coming?' Arabela asked him.

'Sorry…where?' he asked.

'Sebastian is going to see the body and Hickman and I are going to see Palermo's brother,' she explained quickly. 'We thought you might want to come along with us.' He gave her a short nod and followed them out of the room.

* * *

><p>It was relatively warm for October and it bothered Tommy's head. He tried to keep himself from rubbing his forehead as he had seen Arabela shoot several worried looks in his direction. The fact they were standing in front of a closed door with the sun shining on them wasn't helping at all.<p>

'Try again,' he said curtly to Hickman, who then knocked again on the door. That was just their luck: they were getting somewhere but then they're stuck because the guy isn't home. Tommy sighed and looked around. An older woman came walking out of the house next door. She started to speak to them in rapid Italian. Arabela stepped towards her and replied. Tommy was happy she was there. They would get farther with someone who actually spoke Italian.

'She's saying the brother isn't home,' Arabela translated. 'He's at work at the moment. He should be back around half past one for lunch.' Tommy glanced at his watch. Half past one meant they had to wait for three and a half hours.

'Ask her about Giosuè,' Hickman said and Arabela turned back to the older woman. The woman started to make gestures while speaking and Tommy guessed that she was inviting them inside. Not soon after Arabela confirmed his guess and they stepped into the woman's home. While they walked inside the woman introduced herself, in broken English, as Maria Endrizzi. She was born and raised in Grosetto, in this very house they were standing in.

'She's saying that the brothers Palermo were close and saw each other often,' Arabela translated while Maria gave them all something to drink. 'It had been like that since they were little boys. The Palermo family had always lived next door and she used to watch them from time to time when their mother needed to do errands. Apparently Giosuè started to become a bit of a rebel and things got troubled after that. He left the house and didn't come back until both their parents had died.'

'Does she know anything about him and the Vittoria family?' Tommy wanted to know. Maria started to frown when Arabela asked her that question.

'It is bad family,' Maria said in English and she sounded angry. She continued explaining in Italian and Tommy waited impatiently for the story.

'Several younger boys were pulled into the world of crime, as she called it, and ended up in jail,' Arabela translated. 'They were good boys and would have been good if it hadn't been for Giovanni Vittoria.'

'Did you explain to her why we're here?' Tommy asked. 'That we're looking for Eva?' Arabela shook her head and turned back to Maria.

'She felt sorry for the girl,' she translated. 'It had come as a shock when her parents died in the car accident. She had seen Eva at the funeral. It was a sad day, even when it was a don who was killed.'

* * *

><p>Eva's father entered the room as Eva had just laid down on the bed. Her breakfast had just been taken away and she thought she would have been alone for the next couple of hours. She had hoped to be alone. The visits had been enough for her. Each time they brought more hurt to her, either physically or emotionally. Her father gestured her to join him at the table and Eva pulled herself from the bed. Her ribs hurt with the movement.<p>

'My men told me you are working in the Netherlands now,' he slowly started to speak. 'For the International Criminal Court…what does that mean exactly? No more going after your family?' Eva looked at him, not knowing how to answer him. And she needed to see him. To see if there was anything left in him from her father, as she remembered him. All she got from him were his cold eyes. 'Answer me, Eva.'

'We work on cases that cross borders within Europe,' she answered softly. Feeling scared that the answer wouldn't please him. Fearing the punishment for the wrong answer.

'Like what happened to Nicola Conti?' Eva nodded. Her father sighed and put his hand up. A man walked in with papers in his hands. Her father took them and laid them out in front of her. It were pictures and they were of her team.

'They…' he pointed at every picture, 'are in Italy. In our city.' Eva looked at the pictures closely. Tommy had a deep cut at his left eye and he looked tired. They all looked tired. She touched the picture of Tommy at the bottom.

'Who are they, Eva?' her father asked. 'Why are they looking around our city? Talking to people, to the policia?'

'Please leave them alone,' she said to him and the pain from the last couple of days caught up with her. Tears were clouding her vision. She could handle this, but not if anything happened to them. 'Do not hurt them.'

'I never said I would. I just want to know who they are!' He pointed at every picture once again, with more force this time. 'Tell me their names.'

'Please…' Eva mumbled. 'You have me here. You don't need them. I will stay right here. Just leave them alone.' She hated to beg to her father but she wouldn't forgive herself if they got hurt because of her. 'Papà, please. They are no threat to you. Please, don't hurt them. They are like my…' Eva shut her mouth, knowing that continuing with what she wanted to say would only cause more trouble.

'Like your what?' her father asked and his voice became louder. There was anger behind it. 'Like your familia?!' Eva shook her head, but she could see in her father's eyes he did not believe her. He rose from his chair and walked to the door. Two guys walked inside and Eva stood up, ignoring the pain it caused her. Right now she couldn't stay seated and just let whatever happen to her. As soon as one of the guys was in reach she punched him in his face and a loud crack was heard. The guy cried out and grabbed his nose. It didn't take long for more guys to come into the room and take a hold of Eva, making sure she couldn't hit anyone else. Her father stood at the door, just watching.

'No!' Eva screamed and she kicked around, trying to hit anyone, but their hold over her was strong. 'Let me go!' They dragged her out of her room, where she had been stuck for days. In the other room was almost nothing. A fire was burning in the fireplace and there stood a table in the middle of the room. The guys pushed Eva onto her knees and held her by her arms. Her father walked in calmly and he disappeared from her vision. Behind her she could hear him rumble. She tried to see what he was doing, but she couldn't.

'You should remember who your real familia is,' he then said and he appeared into her vision. What she saw scared her. In his hand was an iron, the end shaped in a V, and it was red from the heat. 'Always remember your familia.' He stepped behind her. Eva's breath quickened and she struggled against the men's hold over her, but she couldn't get free. She started to scream in pain as he pushed the hot iron against her shoulder and she could smell burning flesh. Her own burning flesh. The pain stayed but she felt the pressure of the iron disappear. It felt like she couldn't breathe and she threw up from the bad smell.

'Take her back to her room,' her father said calmly. 'And then clean up here.' Eva did nothing as they dragged her back. She couldn't do anything. The pain from her shoulder was excruciating and it didn't take long for the darkness to overtake her.

* * *

><p>Maria walked into the living room, rambling in Italian and making big gestures. Tommy looked out of the window and saw a man walking on the other side of the street.<p>

'It's Oscar Palermo,' Arabela said and she, Tommy and Hickman headed outside. Oscar was about to open his front door when they reached him.

'Oscar Palermo?' Hickman asked and he showed the man his badge. Tommy and Arabela followed his movements.

'Sì?' Oscar answered and he looked at the badges. 'How can I help you?'

'Are you the brother of Giosuè Palermo?' Hickman asked and Oscar sighed.

'Come inside,' he said, opening the door, 'and I will answer all of your questions.' All four of them got inside. 'What did my brother do this time?'

'Unfortunately the local police found your brother yesterday,' Hickman told him. 'He is dead.' Oscar took a deep breath and ran a hand over his face.

'You don't seem too surprised,' Tommy noted.

'You won't either if Giosuè was your brother,' Oscar answered. 'He had the habit of getting into trouble. Do you know how he died?'

'He had several lacerations on his body,' Arabela answered. 'We suspect they have been caused during a fight. Two days ago a woman was kidnapped from her hotel room in Spain and we have evidence that your brother was involved.' Arabela showed him a picture of Eva.

'Do you know this woman?' Tommy asked.

'Ehm…she seems familiar,' Oscar answered. 'But I can't be sure. Giosuè was involved in her kidnapping?' Tommy nodded. 'I can't really help you. I haven't seen my brother in a while…last time I saw him must have been three or four weeks ago.'

'Your brother has been involved with the Vittoria family,' Hickman said and again Oscar nodded.

'Yeah, he always seemed to get himself into trouble, like I said,' he replied. 'Vittoria family is one of those troubles. He thought it was cool and that it would give him power…belonging to a big crime family like the Vittoria family. I told him it would only bring him trouble…but he was young and foolish. He did some time when Giovanni Vittoria was murdered and the family fell apart. No major crime, but being involved with the mafia was enough for some time. I stayed away from that world…all I know about it is from what I read in the papers…'

'Has your brother told you anything about working for the Vittoria family again?' Hickman asked.

'No,' Oscar answered. 'He learnt quickly enough not to talk business to me…except when he needs me to bail him out of jail or something like that…I'm sorry, I don't think I can be of much help for you…I do hope you find her soon.' Tommy sighed and glanced at Arabela and Hickman. Another lead that turned into nothing much.

* * *

><p>Tommy glanced at Hickman as they were walking down a corridor in the hotel. He had asked before where they were going but Hickman hadn't given him an answer. Just that he had to follow him. As they went through a door, the words 'fitness center' flashed before his eyes. Why was Hickman taking him to a gym? It was already late and they had worked a day without getting further. Palermo was a big nothing. The locals were a big nothing. At least they were in Italy getting nothing. Hickman pointed at a punching bag.<p>

'What are we doing here, Hickman?' Tommy asked annoyed. He wasn't up for any games.

'We're going to do some punching,' Hickman answered and he pointed again at one of the bags.

Tommy sighed. 'Because…?'

'Sebastian and Arabela seem worried about you,' Hickman said casually as Tommy took his place in front of a punching bag. 'Sebastian said he was worried about your state of mind...'

'My state of mind is fine,' Tommy said, punching the bag with every word her spoke. He wasn't lying. His state of mind was on the right thing: finding Eva. He didn't want to waste time and his focus was on finding her. His punches against the bag became quicker after each other. It actually felt good to beat something up.

'Tommy...' Hickman said and Tommy shifted his gaze to the man. He gave the bag several more punches and then stopped. He stood in front of it, slowly slowing his breathing down.

'It's already taking so long,' he then said. 'The major is being buried tomorrow...tomorrow...we won't be there. We're not gonna find Eva in just a couple of hours.' Every lead turned them somewhere but not exactly where they needed to be. The locals weren't helping them. They feared the Vittoria family...what did that mean for Eva? She was stuck with that family...And the team...they were stuck in some city in Italy while the major was being laid to rest without them at his side. Tommy punched the bag again and this time he didn't seem able to stop. He just kept hitting the bag repeatedly, using all his frustration, until there was nothing left. When he was empty, he dropped to the ground, his head resting in his hands.

'Let's get you to your room,' Hickman said. 'You had enough and you need to get rest. Before someone doses you with sleeping pills. Sebastian and Arabela had been right: you're running on fumes.' He extended his good hand and pulled Tommy up. Tommy felt drained and walking had never been this hard. Luckily Hickman was there to open the door and put him on the bed, because Tommy didn't know if he would have been able himself. On his bed he was staring at the white ceiling above him. He felt nothing...just empty and drained. It didn't take long before it was too hard to keep his eyes open and Tommy let the sleep overcome him.

**TBC.**

**I have finished written all of the chapters for the story by now...well basically. It's just having them checked and posting them ^^**

**And yesterday I discovered that the ICC is spending a lot of money: a one-way ticket from The Hague to Paris for one person is about 121 euro's. So they have a big budget for traveling I guess xD Or maybe a discount as they are the European Justice League  
><strong>


	7. Chapter 7

**I don't own Crossing Lines! My native language is Dutch and I'm dyslectic so sorry for any mistakes. Thank you for the reviews!**

**Surprise, cdub77! I hope you had a good flight and hope your wrist feels better soon so you can write some more ^^ **

**Enjoy the chapter and I'm sorry it's a shorter one!**

_Chapter 7_

The next morning the team was on their way to the prison in which Nicola Conti was serving his time for the drugs smuggle and killing of several people. He had been the business partner of Giovanni Vittoria back in the day and hopefully he would give them some information about the whereabouts of his former friend. Conti still seemed to care for Eva, even when he blew up her parents' car. But Tommy wasn't confident Conti would give them anything. It felt like a last straw in their search. Where would they go after if this lead went nowhere? He felt tired, exhausted. Even when he had slept for several hours last night, it felt like he needed much more. His concentration was failing him and bad thoughts kept flooding his mind. A quick glance on his watch told him Louis' funeral was starting soon. They were standing in some Italian prison while their boss was being buried. He was still angry with Rebecca for not being willing to wait a little longer, but he also understood it. There was no telling how long the search for Eva would take and Rebecca needed closure. A funeral was one of the steps towards that. The team could go to his grave after they had found Eva. They would get their chance to say goodbye.

Thinking of the Major's funeral made Tommy also think about doctor Anna Clarke, who was still somewhere in Europe, or maybe even somewhere else in the world, enjoying her freedom after killing Louis. Tommy couldn't stand the thought of her being free. She needed to be locked up. Especially after the games she played with them. She clearly needed help with her problems. That was the next case for the team: after finding Eva, the hunt for Doctor Clarke would start.

'Tommy…' Arabela started and he glanced at her.

'Don't ask me how I'm doing,' he warned her. He was tired of people asking how he was. He felt like shit and he knew he looked like shit. So they could just stop asking him and just continue what they were doing.

'I was just going to say that we have arrived at the prison.' Tommy realized the car had indeed come to a stop and he looked out of the window. The prison looked like a prison should look: not a fun place to be in. It was a sober gray building with a big fence and several cameras. Just a regular prison. The team headed inside where they were greeted by the warden.

'Hello, I'm Piccio, the warden of this prison,' the man introduced himself, shaking everyone's hands. 'Can I get you something to drink while we wait for the inmate to be brought to us?' They shook their heads and warden Piccio let them through several corridors to an interrogation room.

'Nicola Conti has been an average prisoner with limited contact to the outside world,' the warden told them. 'Also, he hasn't been willing to talk to anyone about any business related to the mafia. I don't know how he can be of any help with your case…'

'He could be,' Tommy answered curtly, which earned him a glance of Hickman. He took a deep breath and turned away from the warden. Maybe it was better he didn't hear the man speak.

'Any information he could give can be helpful,' Hickman explained. 'It isn't necessarily related to his business. We just have some questions to ask.' The warden shrugged.

'Could we get access to his files?' Sebastian asked. 'The visitors he received, the calls he made?' The warden nodded and gestured him to follow. Sebastian and Arabela followed the man.

* * *

><p>Nicola Conti was sitting calmly behind the table, his hands folded on top of it. If it wasn't for the prison uniform or the cuffs, you would think he was at a business meeting. He offered Hickman a smile.<p>

'I remember you,' he said to him. 'You were there when my daughter was kidnapped…you all helped her find her way back...not necessarily how I would have wanted it…but she's safe now.'

'Then maybe we can ask you for a favor,' Hickman said and Conti started to laugh.

'Favors are costly when you're in prison,' he replied. 'Much more than the safety of my daughter when I sit in prison. Prison is not a good place to be in. Not for a man like me.'

'A man with enemies?' Tommy asked and Conti stared at him for a while. Tommy stayed calm and kept his eyes on the man. They all knew the enemies Conti had and Tommy was sure Conti had heard the whispers of his former business partner rising from the dead.

'Tell me: why is the International Criminal Court here?' Conti asked. 'Asking for a meeting with me in this grim prison interrogation room.'

'We need information about the Vittoria family and its leader Giovanni Vittoria,' Hickman said.

'Giovanni Vittoria is dead and the Vittoria family is no more,' Conti answered but Tommy heard a little tremble in his voice.

'But you can still tell us about the family,' Hickman said calmly. Conti removed his hands from the table and he seemed to tense.

'I will be dead within a day,' he slowly spoke, 'if I betray the Vittoria family.'

'You already did when you blew up the man's car!' Tommy replied, getting annoyed with the man's avoiding answers. 'So you can just tell us and we'll get you protection.' Conti laughed.

'There is no protection from the Vittoria family,' he said. Tommy wanted to reply but Hickman stopped him, by putting his hand on his arm. Tommy took a step back and crossed his arms in front of his chest. Hickman looked at Conti for a while.

'We suspect that Giovanni Vittoria is still alive,' he said. He ignored the sigh Conti gave and calmly continued. 'And we believe he took his daughter. We're trying to find Eva. If you can help us in any way, we can help you.' Conti's posture seemed to soften at the mention of Eva and for a moment Tommy though they were getting somewhere.

'I'm sorry,' Conti then said, 'but the situation remains the same: I cannot help you. I'm very sorry. Eva was a good girl.'

'She still is,' Tommy growled as Hickman put his hand up, signaling the guard that they were done here.

* * *

><p>Eva jumped up when the door was thrown open. One of her father's men walked into the room and his eyes were set on her. Her heartbeat quickened as she noticed the longing gaze as his eyes wandered over her body. She moved backwards, feeling like she couldn't do anything else. She couldn't move her left shoulder from where her father had burned the V into her skin and the lack of food was catching up with her. She felt weak and defenseless against the guy. With just a few steps he stood in front of her. He was at least a head taller than her. The space behind her was running out and soon she stood against the cold moist wall. It didn't take much from him to push her against it, the rough surface hurting her back and mainly her shoulder. He stroked her cheek and licked his lips. She whimpered, trying to get him away, but it seemed to make him more determined. His mouth came crashing down on hers, hungrily, and she felt his hands moving over her body. She tried to get away from those hungry and rough lips but he placed his hands around her neck and face, making her unable to move away. His kisses started to trail down her neck and his one hand moved towards her breast, grabbing it firmly. Tears started to sting in her eyes, but she didn't want to cry. Not for him.<p>

When he looked up, Eva saw her moment and she slammed her head against his. He stepped back, staggering in his place and struggling to find his balance. Eva ducked underneath his arms and headed towards the door. But the man recovered too soon and grabbed her by her hair. She cried out in pain, as he slammed her on the table. The wind was knocked out of her and Eva struggled to catch her breath. The fact that she was face-down on the table didn't help. The man pressed her head against the table and stood behind her. She could feel him brush against her and she started to scream. Tears were rolling over her face. Futilely she tried to get away from him but he was just too strong. She sobbed as his hands moved up her thights. She could have handled it all but not this. She closed her eyes and found herself praying.

'Che diavolo?!' Never had Eva been so relieved to hear her father speak. 'We do not do this! I have told you all! Bastardo! Lei è mia figlia!' The hand on her head was yanked away. As Eva let herself fall. On the floor she could see the man being dragged away by two other guys. Her father stood in the room, looking shocked at her. He stepped towards her but Eva crawled into the corner of the room, against the bed and away from him.

'Principessa…' he whispered and he extended his hand towards her. Her childhood nickname wasn't going to work this time.

'Let me go,' she whispered at him and his face saddened.

'I cannot do that,' he told her. 'You know that. You need to be with your familia.'

'Let me go,' she repeated. Her father shook his head and got up. Without another word he left the room. As soon as she was alone, Eva broke down and cried. She couldn't do this anymore. She was done with it all.

**TBC.**


	8. Chapter 8

**I don't own Crossing Lines! My native language is Dutch and I'm dyslectic so sorry for any mistakes. Thank you for the reviews, favorites and alerts!**

**Happy New Year!  
>Sorry it took some time for the chapter to be uploaded. The holidays and New Years Eva caught up with me. But here is the chapter at last. Enjoy!<strong>

_Chapter 8_

The white walls were slowly closing in on her. Her small prison was only becoming smaller in her mind. Eva was lying on her side on the bed, clutching the sheets. As if they would give her some kind of protection. Her eyelids felt heavy, but she needed to keep them open. She needed to keep her guard up. There was no telling what was going to happen. The guy could come back or another guy could come in. She was locked up in a small room and she was tired. Tired of fighting and tired of hoping. All she longed for was sleep. Sleep and a shower. A shower where she could scrub her skin clean and forget about yesterday. Forget about all that happened to her. Her eyelids were starting to become too heavy, but she needed to be awake. Stay alert, even when she had nothing left inside of her to keep fighting. Every fiber of her being was saying to keep awake…but it was so hard…

_Hurried footsteps on the floor. It was time! The morning had only just begun, but she had been awake for a long time. She had seen the sun come up and starting to shine. Once her clock showed 7 o'clock, she knew she could get out of bed. She ran down the stairs. Voices were heard from down the hall. As she ran towards it, she noticed several men standing with her father and the door was open. They were leaving because her birthday was always just the three of them._

_ 'Ah, mia bella figlia,' her father greeted her with the biggest smile and he pulled her into his arms. 'Buon compleanno, Eva!' The men around them wished her happy birthday as well and then quickly left. Her father looked at her, with a twinkle in his eyes. 'Shall we go and see if your mama has already awoken?' Eva nodded eagerly and took her father by his hand. She practically pulled him towards their bedroom and her father laughed. Eva opened the door carefully and looked inside._

_ 'Buon compleanno, mia principessa,' her mother greeted from the bed and Eva ran inside, jumping onto the bed and into her mother's arms. Her mother placed eight kisses on her face. One for each year. 'Did you sleep well?'_

_ 'I've been awake for hours!' Eva answered excitedly._

_ 'Oh, too excited for your birthday?' her mother asked and Eva nodded. 'For the cake?' Again Eva nodded. Suddenly she heard singing from behind her and as she turned around, her father walked in with a cake. On the cake were eight candles burning. Her mother held her back as her father carefully placed the cake on the nightstand._

_ 'Make a wish, principessa,' her father told her. Eva closed her eyes. She already knew what she wanted to wish for. Then she took a deep breath and blew out all the candles. Her parents applauded and her mother stroked her hair._

_ 'I think it's time for some presents,' her father said and grabbed a box with a bow of ribbon from outside the room. He placed it on the bed._

_ 'We hope you like it,' her mother said as Eva moved towards the box. Suddenly she could hear something from inside. She opened the box and a tiny black head appeared. Its tail hit the sides of the box as it wagged it._

_ 'Oh thank you!' Eva exclaimed and she hugged both her parents. 'What is its name?' _

_ 'That's your job to decide,' her father said. 'He needs a good name.' Eva looked at the little puppy and stroked its head carefully. It licked her hand and tried to climb out of the box._

_ 'Pepito,' Eva decided and she lifted the puppy out of the box. 'Your name is Pepito.'_

_ 'Sounds like a perfect name, principessa,' her father said._

_ 'Can I go play with Pepito in the garden?' Eva asked._

_ 'Don't you want some cake?' her mother asked and Eva shook her head. All she wanted was to play outside with her new puppy. All year she had asked for a puppy. She had even wished for one! Her mother laughed. 'Okay, go play outside. We will call you for breakfast when it's ready.' Eva put Pepito down on the floor and jumped off the bed._

_ 'Come, Pepito,' she called for the puppy and she ran towards the door. 'We're going outside!'_

* * *

><p>Tommy's bed was surprisingly comfortable and his pillow soft enough for him to forget about the raging headache he had had for days. Conti hadn't given them much, just the confirmation that they had been right: the Vittoria family hadn't disappeared. He wondered how it must have been for Eva to grow up inside a mafia family, even if she hadn't really known. He couldn't imagine the betrayal she must have felt when she found out. How do you even deal with the discovery that your parents were killed and that your father was the head of a mafia family? It could very well explain why she had ended up in the anti-mafia task force. The sharp sound of his phone made him turn and reach for his phone.<p>

'McConnel?'

'_Tommy, we have a visitor in the lobby. If you could come down as well; he has some information to share with him_.´ Hickman kept it short. Tommy made his way to the lobby, curious about who would be there. A young man was standing with Hickman, Arabela and Sebastian. The man greeted him right away.

´You must be Tommy. I´m detective Lorenzo Vincente from the anti-mafia task force and Eva's former partner.' Tommy shook the man's hand and glanced at Sebastian. He knew about Sebastian's connection with the man as well and wondered about the feelings Sebastian was having right now. His Scan-gen meant a lot to him and he did not like anyone messing with them. Tommy also disliked the Italian detective for getting Sebastian in all that trouble only a couple of months ago. But he was here now to help with finding Eva, so Tommy would gladly put all those feelings aside.

'We're all here now,' Hickman told Vincente. 'Could you tell us now what kind of information you have?' Vincente nodded and guided them to a table. He placed several files on it.

'It took me some time to come to you because we have to be careful,' he started. 'I needed to be sure I could give it to you. The Vittoria family has some connections within the police force and I'm not sure yet who I can trust. That also makes me relatively certain that the family know that you guys are looking for Eva and that you're clearly not giving up.'

'Could that mean they will move Eva soon?' Arabela asked.

'Or should we expect one of the members visiting us in our hotel rooms?' Sebastian wondered. Vincente shook his head.

'The fact nothing happened…makes me think they feel secure enough,' he answered. 'That they think all leads are covered and nothing will lead you to them.'

'Okay…could you just tell us what you got?' Tommy asked, getting a little annoyed with the lack of useful words of the man. 'The useful information?' He couldn't care less whether those guys would go after him. He could handle some mafia guys.

'A body was found last night,' Vincente said and he showed pictures of the body. 'He was shot twice in the back of the head: execution style. We put a rush on the forensic and they just came back. Eva's DNA was underneath his fingernails and there was some on his clothes.'

What kind of DNA was found on his clothes?' Tommy asked.

'It was a small amount of blood. In the form of a smudge like he brushed against her. It was nothing near a fatal amount.' Tommy gave a short nod.

'Who is the guy?' Arabela wanted to know.

'That's something we're working on,' Vincente answered. 'As you can see on the pictures he received quite a beating before being executed. They didn't care about him being found. He was dumped behind some restaurant in the containers.'

'I want to see the guy,' Tommy announced, not giving anyone a say in the matter.

'Of course, I will take you to the morgue,' Vincente said.

'We'll go to the crime scene and see if we can find anything there,' Hickman said.

* * *

><p>Vincente hadn't been kidding when he said the guy had received a beating. He was bruised all over. Tommy took a deep breath, hoping to get used to the smell. It still bothered him. He could never get used to it. He leaned in to take a closer look at the man's face. It was pretty swollen and his nose seemed broken.<p>

'The victim suffered from severe trauma,' the coroner told him and pointed at several bruises. 'These bruises were caused by fists and feet. Abrasions on his knees indicate that he kneeled for a long time: probably kneeling before he was executed. DNA was found underneath his fingernails, which means he put up a fight.'

'Where was the blood found on his clothes?'

'It was on the right shoulder of his shirt,' the coroner answered. 'It could have been caused when someone who was bleeding brushed against him. Either to get away or to attack...Detective Vincente told me this man could have been involved in the kidnapping of your colleague…'

'We're pretty damn sure he was involved,' Tommy replied. The coroner smiled weakly.

'I hope you find her soon.' The doors were thrown open and Vincente walked into the autopsy room.

'My team managed to identify him,' he announced and he showed Tommy his phone. 'His name is Marcus Fiorentino. We had our eye on him because of his suspected connection with the Vittoria family. Looks like it didn't work out for him.'

'Could they find anything that could give us a location?' Tommy asked hopefully.

'My team retraced his steps of the last couple of days and found him visiting an old house on the country side quite often,' Vincente answered. 'It's not too far from Grosetto. Other intell told us that it has been busy at the house for the last couple of weeks with cars and more activity. We were able to cross-reference Palermo's and Fiorentino's steps and it seems likely that the house is the location of the Vittoria family for the last couple of weeks.'

'So what are we waiting for?' Tommy asked. Vincente gestured him to lead the way.

'My and your team are already on their way to the edge of town where we can meet up,' he informed Tommy as they walked to the car.

* * *

><p>No one had come to the room all day. Or that's what it felt like. Eva had lost all concept of time. Hours could have passed and it felt like minutes for her, or the other way around. The meals she was getting had been some indication of time. Now all she had was the small window. It was still light outside, but she couldn't really tell the time. The feeling of hunger had passed by now. She had lost her appetite days ago but there had always been some feeling of hunger. The thirst was worse. Her mouth was dry and she licked her lips. The walls had closed in so much that Eva felt like she could no longer move, so she stayed in the bed. She didn't have the energy to get off the bed even if she had felt the urge.<p>

Memories of her childhood were crossing her mind over and over. Happy times with her parents, when everything had still felt normal. Even with the knowledge from now, she couldn't see any signs of her father's crimes in her memories.

When it wasn't memories of her childhood, it were memories of her time at the ICC; the short time she had spent there. During that time it had become like her family. They been through a lot together in the year the team even existed. Sienna dying, Anne-Marie dying, everything with Genovani and the kidnapping of the Major…next to the crimes they were investigating, they had to deal with those events. It had never been easy, but they were there for each other. Now she was alone in this room. Locked up for days. She felt horrible about it and felt that she was slowly losing hope. Hope of getting out of this room; hope of the team finding her. She found herself wondering whether they had given up on her yet. Whether she should give up.

Eva rested her eyes for a moment. She felt exhausted. Tired of everything. Staying away was getting harder and harder as her eyelids became heavier and heavier. Right now sleep was easy. There was no pain in sleep. In sleep this would be over. If only she had not to wake up…Maybe if she went to sleep this time…she would not have to wake up.

**TBC.**


	9. Chapter 9

**I don't own Crossing Lines! My native language is Dutch and I'm dyslectic so sorry for any mistakes. ****Thank you for the reviews, favorites and alerts!**

_Chapter 9_

The Italian countryside rushed by rather quickly. Tommy was in the car with Hickman, Arabela Sebastian and Vincente who was driving. They were followed by Vincente's men and some of the local police.

'Giovanni Vittoria spent a lot of energy on keeping his activities a secret or at least not connected to him,' Vincente told them. 'He was brilliant that way. He managed to keep it from the outside world and his family. To them he was a loving and kind man. A family man and he gave money to charity...but we learned that he was a true ruler within his crime family. A harsh ruler. The initiation of the family was a V being burned into their forearm; a sign that you belonged to the family. Giovanni accepted no failure or defiance. Whoever failed or defied him got punished.' Tommy took a deep breath. That couldn't be good for Eva. She had clearly defied him: she joined the anti-mafia taskforce. The taskforce that was trying to catch him. He voiced the worry within the car and it was silent for a while.

'Eva never felt like she defied anyone,' Vincente said. It sounded a bit defensive to Tommy and he glared at the back head of the detective who continued without noticing. 'Not when she joined, nor when she arrested mafia members. She chose to do it, because she thought she did the right thing.

'I never said she defied her father,' Tommy contradicted, 'but her father would probably see it that way...' Which meant she would get punished. Tommy looked out of the window, hoping they didn't need much longer to reach the destination. He should have come to Spain when she called him, but he was coming now. He just hoped it wasn't too late.

Tommy's leg was moving nervously and uncontrollably and he noticed Hickman glancing at him. It was a glance of worry; worried whether Tommy could keep his head straight. He forced his leg to stop and he gave Hickman a nod. He was going to be okay. As long as they arrived at the house rather quickly.

* * *

><p>There were sounds outside. Sounds that Eva hadn't heard before. She slowly opened her eyes and sat up. It was the first real sound she heard from outside: hurried footsteps crossing the garden, and shooting. She couldn't focus on the words they were shouting but it was clear something was going on. She fought to keep her eyes opened. Exhaustion was upon her, creeping up closer and closer. But she needed to stay awake, alert. She couldn't fall asleep now that something was going on. Who knew who would enter the room? Someone to take her away or someone to kill her. She didn't expect her father to come. He had stayed away after the...incident. The look in his eyes in the moment told her enough. It was disappointment. There was no way that he was planning on letting her go. This room that had become so familiar to her would become all she would see for the rest of her life.<p>

Eva's eyelids were heavy and sitting upright became harder and harder. Her head was pounding and she felt the need to rest. When her head touched the pillow she needed to close her eyes. She needed to rest her eyes for just a moment.

* * *

><p>It wasn't a very suspicious house. Just a big manor from brownish stone. A place where a rich family could live and children could play in the garden. Nothing from the outside indicated that there was a mafia family inside. Except several cars out front and more cars on the driveway with police standing near them.<p>

'There are twenty people inside the manor,' Vincente informed them. 'There were four men spotted outside, armed. According to Intel Giovanni Vittoria is inside. The hostage is suspected to be there as well. We want the hostage unharmed and Giovanni Vittoria captured alive.' Tommy winced at the word hostage. It was so impersonal. They all knew who the hostage was...but he knew that was the way to brief the team. He just had to deal with the terms.

'...understood?' Vincente asked and Tommy looked up. The members of the taskforce all gave a short nod and they prepared to enter the house. Tommy took a deep breath and checked his Kevlar vest again. He glanced at the manor, waiting patiently for the go ahead. Vincente was talking to his taskforce, pointing and making gestures. A hand landed on his shoulder and Tommy turned around. Hickman was standing behind him.

'You okay?' he asked.

'Yeah,' Tommy answered curtly. 'Ready to finish this.' He gripped his gun when he noticed some of the people moving towards the house. He was more than ready to get this over with and return home with Eva and the team.

'Tommy...' Hickman's worried voice stopped Tommy from moving and he turned to the older man. 'Don't do anything stupid. We're all getting out of here.' Tommy gave him another short nod and headed to his team to breach the manor.

* * *

><p>They entered through the front of the house with three teams, splitting up in the hallway. Tommy's team, consisting of taskforce men and Sebastian, headed to the first floor, sweeping every room they passed. The floor was surprisingly empty and Tommy began to wonder if there was a specific reason he was sent to this floor. Then one of the taskforce men signaled that there was someone in the next room. Tommy took a deep breath when he entered the office. In the room he met with Giovanni Vittoria. The way the man was sitting at his desk made Tommy furious. He was calm, his hands resting on the table, a little leaned back in his chair. It was as if he was waiting. Tommy raised his gun and pointed it at the man's forehead.<p>

'Where is Eva?' he asked. 'Where is your daughter?' Giovanni smiled and he shrugged.

'Non parlo ingles,' he answered and rage filled Tommy's mind. He gripped his gun tighter.

'Tommy...' Sebastian warned him and Tommy took a deep breath, lowering his gun. He kept his eyes on Giovanni, who didn't do anything as a taskforce member handcuffed him. The officer guided him out of the room and Tommy followed. From his ear piece he heard the word 'clear' being called repeatedly. They weren't finding Eva. He looked at the man who he knew was holding Eva somewhere and something snapped. He grabbed Giovanni out of the officer's hands and he pushed the man against the wall, holding his gun next to Giovanni's head.

'Where is Eva?!' Tommy demanded and again Giovanni smiled. Tommy gripped his gun and pressed it against Giovanni's forehead. 'Do you understand this, huh?! Where is Eva?'

'Tommy!' Sebastian shouted. 'Put the gun down.'

'No!' Tommy yelled at the German tech. 'He is the one who knows where Eva is! He will tell us. I will make sure of that!' From the corner of his eye he saw the taskforce members with their hands on their still holstered guns, ready to raise it when needed. Tommy couldn't care less whether they shot him. They just needed to know where Eva was. He pressed the gun barrel more into Giovanni's forehead. 'He needs to tell us!'

'Tommy!' Sebastian repeated, but his tone was softer this time. Thoughts were raging through Tommy's mind. Was he really going to shoot Eva's father? Without a location? How else was he going to find her? Hickman's voice gave him the answer to keep his mind from raging.

'_I found her! Tommy, I found Eva! She's in the basement!_' Tommy looked at Giovanni and Tommy smiled. The man could do nothing anymore.

'I'm on my way!' he said and he let Giovanni go, racing down the stairs towards the basement. The house was big and he had to get to the other side.

* * *

><p>Tommy jumped over a dead body that was slumped against the wall, blood dripping from the hole in his chest. He didn't give the man much thought as he ran through the corridor. Two officers were standing in front of an opened door and Tommy slowed down. The small room was already quite filled with Hickman, Vincente and another officer standing inside. The officer stepped aside and Tommy saw Eva sitting on the bed, hugging her knees and mumbling words he could not understand. Her left hand was bandaged and the part Tommy could see of her was bruised. Hickman grabbed his arm as he walked towards her.<p>

'She doesn't seem to respond to us,' he warned him. 'Be careful.' Tommy nodded. He hadn't planned other than treading carefully. He didn't want to cause her more pain. Tommy crouched in front of the bed, clearly visible if she lifted her head. Gently he reached out and put his hand on hers. She was trembling and his heart sank a little. What had she been gone through?

'Eva?' he whispered but there was no response. She kept her head bowed down, rocking herself. Tommy turned to the others in the room and motioned them to leave the room. It was crowded and Eva had been locked up here; she must have gotten used to the empty room. To not seeing so many people. Maybe she would snap back in reality. Tommy rubbed small circles on her hand, but nothing seemed to get her attention. He ran the possibilities through his head. How was he going to get through to her? He tried to hear what she was mumbling but he couldn't make sense of it. It was like she was speaking in...He closed his eyes. That would make sense. Digging in his memory he tried to remember Italian.

'Ciao, bella,' he whispered and to his relief Eva looked up. Tears were in her eyes and she blinked several times. He smiled at her, glad to see her face. It was bruised and cut, but it was still Eva.

'Tommy...' she stumbled and he saw her lip tremble. Her eyes didn't leave his face, as if she didn't believe he was real. He squeezed her hand and Eva began to cry. Tommy pulled her into his arms.

'It's okay,' he whispered to her. 'We got you.' Holding her was all he had wanted these last couple of days and now that he was, everything felt good. Stress and worry were leaving his body, being replaced by pure relief. She grasped his shirt tightly, as if she feared he would leave her again. Tommy stroked her hair and rested his chin gently on her head. 'You're safe.' At the door he saw Hickman looking into the room and Tommy gave him a little nod. Then he pushed Eva a bit back so he could see her face again.

'Are you ready to go?' he asked and Eva nodded. Tommy stood up and held his hand out to her. She grabbed it and with his support she managed to stand up. He felt her shake and he held her tighter, giving her a moment to find her balance. This was going to happen at her pace. She was in charge in this moment. Slowly she raised her foot to take the first step, but it didn't go as she wanted. She lost her balance and fell into Tommy's arms. Tommy watched her and then scooped her in his arms. Eva didn't resist and he knew she felt weak herself. Any other time she would have told him to put her down. That she would to it herself. Her head rested against her shoulder.

'Follow me,' Vincente said when Tommy walked out of the room. 'The ambulance is waiting outside.' When they got upstairs, Eva winced and she shielded her eyes. The sun was shining brightly, filling the manor with light. However, inside the room it had been relatively dark.

'Are you okay?' Tommy asked worried. 'It's not much farther.' Eva nodded. He tried to shield her somewhat from the light as he carried her to the ambulance. Sebastian and Arabela stood next to it, seeming worried when Tommy came towards them, carrying Eva, but they didn't say anything. They let them through and Tommy put Eva down on the stretcher.

'They are going to take you to the hospital now, okay?' Tommy informed her and Eva grabbed his hand.

'Stay,' she whispered hoarsely and Tommy didn't need anything more to get into the ambulance with her. He held her hand tight and rested his forehead against it. Finally she was back with him.

**TBC.**


	10. Chapter 10

**I don't own Crossing Lines! My native language is Dutch and I'm dyslectic so sorry for any mistakes. Thank you for all the reviews, alerts and favorites.**

**Sorry it took some time to put this one up. I was away for 5 days and had no internet at all. So no chance to send the chapter to my sister nor to upload the chapter. I'm also currently in my exam weeks, which gets first place.**

**I'm in no way a medical expert so I apologize for any mistakes in regards of all the medical stuff. Also this is the first time (and perhaps last time) uploading a chapter via my tablet, so I'm sorry if anything turns out weird or something.**

_Chapter 10_

Eva was brought into a treatment room at the local hospital by the EMTs. Tommy walked alongside the stretcher, holding her hand. The rest of the team didn't take long to enter the room after them. Eva still felt tired and she rested her head against the back of the stretcher. Her eyes glanced at everyone in the room when she realized someone was missing.

'Where is the Major?' she asked and right away she noticed a change in her team members postures, like she had said something wrong. She looked at them and then at Tommy, who was looking at her with a sadness in his eyes. He started rubbing circles on her hand again.

'What happened to him?' she asked. Tommy took a deep breath and Eva could swear she saw something like tears forming in his eyes. She glanced at the others and she knew that whatever had happened to the Major, it was bad.

'Umm...we were on a case which involved a woman...' Tommy started to explain and his voice sounded like it was about to break. 'We thought she was a victim at first but as it turned out she was behind it all...Hickman was with her when we discovered her involvement and the Major went to the villa...umm...' Tommy glanced at Hickman, who took a step towards the stretcher. Eva tightened her grip on Tommy's hand and he gave her a little squeeze.

'Doctor Anna Clarke pulled a gun to shoot me when Louis enter the house,' Hickman continued. 'She shot him. Once in the shoulder and then two more times...' Eva tried to swallow her tears away but a couple escaped. '...he...umm...died, Eva. I couldn't save him...' She looked at Tommy, whose eyes were locked on her.

'The Major is dead?' she mumbled and he slowly nodded. 'And the doctor?'

'We haven't found her, yet,' Hickman told her. 'I was looking for her when...' When they went after me, Eva concluded. They had to stop looking for the Major's killer because she was stupid enough to go after her father alone.

'Hey,' Tommy whispered at her and he leaned towards her. 'We'll get her.'

* * *

><p>The door opened and a female doctor walked inside followed by a nurse. They seemed surprised by all the people in the room.<p>

'I'm sorry but I have to ask you to leave,' she told the team with a heavy Italian accent. 'I have to examine sergente Vittoria.' The team nodded and said their goodbyes to Eva, promising to return soon. Eva held Tommy's hand, just when he was about to leave. She wasn't going to let him go anytime soon. She needed him there.

'Please stay,' she whispered to him. He nodded and sat in the chair next to her bed. Eva turned to the doctor, who had come closer to her.

'He can stay,' she said in Italian to the doctor.

'Fine by me,' the doctor replied in Italian as well. 'I'm doctor Delluci. May I?' Eva nodded and doctor Delluci gently applied pressure on the bruises on her face. When Eva winced, Tommy gave her hand a squeeze. She smiled at him while the doctor continued examining her face. It was a relief to her that the doctor spoke Italian. Knowing Tommy wouldn't understand the questions and answers, gave her the freedom she needed to speak.

'Okay, nothing seems broken,' doctor Delluci concluded. 'Could you try to sit up for me? I would like to take a look at your shoulder.' Eva sat up with some help of Tommy. She felt very self-conscious and aware that Tommy would be able to see the burn as well. The V as a reminder of the family she belonged to. She winced when doctor Delluci applied pressure on the surrounding skin. 'We will have to clean the burn to keep it from infecting.' The nurse gave her a short nod and wrote it down on the chart. 'Eva, you can lean back now. I would like to take a look at your hand.' Eva held up her hand and doctor Delluci started to unwrap the hand carefully.

'It looks like the wounds were cleaned and bandaged by a professional,' she said. 'Am I right about that?'

'They had a doctor...or someone with medical experience,' Eva answered, remembering the kind behavior of the man. The only one who had been kind to her. 'The wounds were caused by a mirror shard...he replaced the bandage one time.' Doctor Delluci nodded and rewrapped her hand with the old bandage.

'We'll put a clean one on it in a moment,' she said to Eva. She looked over at Tommy, who was still standing by Eva's side, holding her hand.

'I was told that you were captured for several days,' she started and Eva stiffened, somewhat expecting what was coming next. Tommy seemed to feel the tension and returned to rubbing circles on the back of her hand. 'I have to ask whether there was any sexual contact during that time.'

'No,' Eva managed to answer.

'Are you sure?' doctor Delluci asked. 'Could there have been a moment...' Eva looked at Tommy and he squeezed her hand. He seemed to understand what was going on even without knowing Italian.

'I'm pretty sure,' Eva answered.

'Would you give me permission to examine you anyway?' doctor Delluci asked. 'Just to be sure.' Eva took a deep breath. She was pretty sure...but what if something had happened? She closed her eyes while she nodded.

'Are you okay with your friend staying?' doctor Delluci. Eva's eyes shot open and she looked at Tommy. There was worry in his eyes. He would know what was going on when she would ask him to leave and some part of her didn't want him to let her hand go. But if she couldn't handle him hearing her answers to the doctor, would she be able to have him next to her while doctor Delluci did a rape kit on her?

'I should get some coffee,' Tommy told her, making the decision for her. Her grip on his hand instantly tightened, not wanting him to leave, but he gave it a quick kiss before letting go. 'I won't be long and I will be right outside. I can be right back here when you need me.' Eva fought against the tears as she watched him walk out of the room. The nurse stepped beside her, patting her hand.

'It won't take long,' she assured Eva. 'He can return as soon as we're done.'

* * *

><p>Tommy took a deep breath the second he stepped out of the room, and ran a hand over his face. He turned to the closed door behind him and wished he could be inside, next to Eva. It made him uncomfortable not being next to her. He took another deep breath and decided to get that coffee.<p>

'Tommy?' Hickman's voice turned him around and he saw Hickman, Sebastian, Arabela and Vincente walk towards him. 'Is she okay?'

'Yeah,' he answered. 'The doctor just needed to do some check-ups.'

Arabela handed him a cup of steaming coffee. 'Here you go. It actually tastes decent for hospital coffee.'

'Thanks,' Tommy said and he took a sip. The caffeine cleared his mind a little.

'How is Eva doing?' Sebastian wanted to know.

'Okay...' Tommy answered. 'She will be okay.' He then turned to Vincente. 'Did everyone get arrested? What happened to Giovanni Vittoria?'

'We got all of them,' Vincente answered. 'And we got the locations of other members of the family. There is nothing to worry about right now.' Tommy took a relieved breath. Hickman placed a hand on his arm and guided him to the chairs nearby.

'Sit down before you pass out,' he said. As Hickman said the words, Tommy felt the exhaustion wash over him. He glanced at the team as they waited for doctor Delluci. All looked tired, which Tommy had not noticed before. It had been quite a few days for all of them, but they were going to be okay. All of them were going to be okay. He said it over and over again in his head until he started to believe it himself.

The coffee in his hand had slowly turned cold when doctor Delluci came walking out of the door. Tommy jumped up from his chair. It had taken the doctor a long time and he hoped Eva was okay.

'Eva is going to be okay,' doctor Delluci said when she stood in front of them. 'She has a concussion, several bruises and cuts that have been taken care of. We cleaned the wound on her hand and on her shoulder and bandaged them. She will have to stay in the hospital for observation but it looks she will be okay physically.'

'Can we see her?' Tommy asked.

'Not yet,' doctor Delluci answered. 'A nurse is still with her and soon she will be taken to her own room. When she's in her own room, you can see her. But not too long: it's important that she gets some rest.'

* * *

><p>It took about an hour for Eva to get settle in her room and the team was allowed to see her again. Tommy found himself hurrying into the room ahead of the rest of the team. Eva gave him a weak smile. Tommy sat down in the chair next to her bed and looked at her. She looked better. She was no longer wearing the filthy dress, but a hospital gown. An IV was put in her hand. Eva's hand reached for his and he gave it a little squeeze. He was about to say something when the rest of the team entered the room as well. It startled Eva but she smiled when they walked towards her bed. Tommy noticed her toying with her sheet. It looked like she was a bit self-conscious about being in a hospital gown.<p>

'How are you feeling?' Sebastian asked.

'Umm...better,' Eva answered. 'They gave me some pain medication and new clothes...so I feel better...' Tommy watched her closely. She avoided eye contact with everyone and Tommy was worried. Maybe the doctor had found some indication of...or told her something. She had given him the smile when he enter, which he took as an 'okay' but maybe it wasn't. A squeeze in his hand made him look at her.

'I'm okay,' she assured him. Then she turned to the rest of the team. 'Thank you for finding me...' The thanks were almost a whisper.

'Of course,' Hickman replied. 'We're a team and we need to be complete.' Eva gave him a weak smile. The door opened and a nurse walked inside.

'I'm sorry to interrupt but I have strict orders from the doctor that Eva needs to get some rest,' she said while she checked the chart and IV bag. She raised her eyebrows when no one made a move. 'That means everyone has to leave.' She gave Tommy a look.

'Okay, Eva, get some rest,' Hickman said to her. 'We'll come back later.' Sebastian and Arabela said their goodbyes as well. Tommy stayed in his seat, hesitating where he should go.

'You can return when the visiting hours start again,' the nurse told him.

'We need someone to stay with her,' Tommy replied. He saw the rest of the team standing at the door, waiting to see how this would end.

'Tommy...' Eva said but she fell silent. She might want him to leave but the hold on his hand told Tommy something else.

'Well, doctor Delluci also told me to get the guy with a wound next to his eye to leave so he can get some rest as well,' the nurse said. 'And I guess that means you. Maybe one of your colleagues could stay with her?'

'I will stay,' Arabela announced and she walked over to Tommy. 'You should get some rest.' Tommy looked at Eva, who gave him a little nod and she let go of his hand. He stood up.

'Call me as soon as something happens,' he told Arabela. He turned to Eva. 'I will be back in a couple of hours.'

'Get some rest, Tommy,' Eva told him. 'You look like you could use it.'

'Jeez, thanks,' Tommy joked and he gave a smile before heading out of the room.

**TBC.**


	11. Chapter 11

**I don't own Crossing Lines! My native language is Dutch and I'm dyslectic so sorry for any mistakes. Thank you for all the reviews, alerts and favorites! They make me happy!**

**And more happy news: Crossing Lines got a season 3 and they start shooting next month! (thanks to cdub77 for keeping me updated ^^)**

**Weird stuff happened with this chapter...as I'm currently writing on two devices...so the first part might now be perfect (I apologize!). Also I'm not really happy with the chapter. I rewrote it a couple of times but it didn't seem to work. So I'm sorry for this chapter! It was a tough one to write**

_Chapter 11_

Tommy was sitting on his bed, staring at the wall opposite of him. He felt exhausted but still sleep wasn't coming to him. Too much was going on in his mind. A shower had helped a little for the exhausted and teh pain medication he had gotten from a doctor for his head definitely helped. It was just that too much was running around. Too much had happened these last couple of days and it made him feel so exhausted. He wanted to sleep, but felt like he couldn't. Tommy took a deep breath and rested his head in his hands. So much had happened and yet it was like he only realized that just now. And as he thought about the events, he felt the tears coming. He wanted to fight them but couldn't find the stremgth to do so. So the tears fell. Tears for the Major and the way they had lost them. Tears for failing him because they had not yet caught his killer. Tears for Eva and all she been through by her bloody own father's hands. Once the tears had begun, they didn't seem to stop. In that moment, Tommy just had enough. It had been inside for too long and needed to come out, right this moment.

Then Tommy decided it was enough. It had no more use to keep on trying. He could better do somethig to fix those things. At least the ones he could fix. There wasn't much he could do for the Major. The Major was gone and Tommy couldn't make him come back. But he could find Dr. Anna Clarke and make pay for killing the Major cold bloodly. He could be there for Eva; make sure she was doing okay and help her through this. His mind wandered to Eva. He wished he could be there with her right now. Ever since the moment he had seen her in that small prison, there had been some sort of contact between them. Now that they were apart from each other again, it had some unnerving feeling. Tommy glanced at his watch to see how much time had passed and whether he could return to the hospital. He wasn't getting much rest here anyway.

* * *

><p>Tommy felt better when he stepped out of the elevator on Eva's floor. He knew he could only get some form of rest when he was close to her. Right now he just needed to see that she was actually back and it hadn't been some twisted dream. Her room wasn't far away. Arabela walked out of the room when he approached it.<p>

'How is she doing?' he asked and he glanced through the little glass window in the door.

'She's actually sleeping right now,' Arabela answered. 'The local police came by two hours ago for an official statement.' Tommy turned his head to her. Official statement? About the kidnapping?

'I told you to call if something happened!' he said angrily. 'Her giving a statement qualifies as something! Why didn't you call me?'

'Because Eva told me not to,' Arabela told him and he frowned. She sighed. 'She had her doctor talk Italian to her so you wouldn't understand... Did you think she would want you there with her when she gave her statement about what happened?'

'Why wouldn't she want me there?' he asked.

'Because you would get angry,' Arabela answered. 'Or you might feel guilty about what happened to her because you didn't come when she called you...' Tommy watched Arabela for a moment, who looked very calm. How did she know that? 'We all know you were thinking that. You have to give us some credit, Tommy. We know you...and you're not that good at hiding your feelings.' Tommy ran his hand over his head.

'And she is doing okay?' he asked worriedly, feeling the urge to walk in even more.

'She seemed somewhat upset when I walked back in,' Arabela answered. 'But she was mainly tired so I told her to get some sleep. You can go inside. I'm going to the hotel to get some rest myself.' Tommy nodded and Arabela walked away.

'Hey, Arabela,' Tommy said, turning around and stopping Arabela. 'Thank you.' A smile appeared on her face and she gave him a little wave. Tommy turned back to the door and opened carefully, not wanting to wake Eva up. She looked peacefully at sleep and Tommy sat down in the chair beside her bed. His hand took her hand almost unconsciously, needing the physical contact. Her peaceful sleep had a very calming effect on him. His eyes were locked on her face, taking it all in. He had missed her.

After about fifteen minutes of watching Eva sleep, Tommy noticed that she started to frown. Not long after that, she began to mumble and toss. He realized she was having a nightmare. He got up and placed his other hand on her head. She looked distressed.

'Eva, wake up,' he whispered. 'It's just a nightmare. You're okay. You're safe.' He stroked her hair and kept whispering the same over and over until Eva's eyes shot open. He gave her a little smile, hoping that it would make her realize she was really okay.

'Tommy...' she mumbled confusedly and she looked around.

'You're in the hospital,' Tommy told her. 'You're safe. Do you remember?' Eva nodded. She looked at him and then gently touched the side of his face.

'You're hurt,' she noted and Tommy nodded. 'What happened?'

'Well, on the case in Marseille, there was a sniper and he took a shot,' he explained to her. 'But he waited until I spotted him before shooting, giving me the chance to turn my head just in time. It's just a graze...and it's fine.'

'It doesn't look very fine,' Eva said.

'It is fine, I promise. A French and an Italian doctor looked at it and deemed me fine to walk around. No need to worry about me.'

'Was this the same case that killed the Major?' Tommy hesitated. It had been. Maybe he had been luckier than he had realized...he could have died as well. He looked at Eva when she squeezed his hand.

'It was...' he answered. 'I was lucky...' They looked at each other for a moment. 'Maybe you should get some more sleep...I will be right here.' He nodded at the chair and he rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand.

'You should get some rest as well,' Eva told him and Tommy smiled at her.

'I will get some rest in the chair when you get some sleep,' he assured her while he took a seat. Eva gave him a nod and she closed her eyes again. Tommy kept rubbing the back of her hand, even when her breathing evened out and he knew she was asleep. He only stopped when he received a text from Sebastian, stating they needed to talk. Tommy took one look at Eva and replied to Sebastian that he should come to the hospital.

* * *

><p>Sebastian and Hickman arrived shortly after the text and Tommy once again stood outside of Eva's room. He had opened the blinds at the window so he could see her and she would be able to see them when she woke up. So that she knew he hadn't left her.<p>

'Dorn wants us back at The Hague,' Sebastian told him. 'As soon as possible. He needs the team back.' Anger rose inside Tommy. What was Dorn thinking? They couldn't come back right away. Eva was still here.

'I'm not leaving as long as Eva is still here,' he said defensively and he crossed his arms. 'I don't care about what Dorn wants. I don't care if it gets me fired: I'm staying with Eva.' A little smile appeared on Hickman's face. 'What?'

'We already said the same to Dorn,' Hickman replied. 'We arranged that Arabela, Sebastian and I leave for The Hague first thing tomorrow. I'm sure we can figure out how to get work done with just the three of us. You can stay here until Eva is released.' Tommy gave a slow nod. Maybe Arabela had been right and he was bad at covering up his feelings.

'Thanks,' he said and he glanced at Eva, who was still sleeping.

'No problem,' Hickman replied. 'Eva probably would want you to stay either way...and we should focus on making her feel better.'

'How is she doing?' Sebastian asked.

'She gave her statement earlier,' Tommy answered, hoping that that would explain enough. He wasn't planning on telling them about her nightmare and the distress there had been on her face. The explanation seemed enough to Sebastian and Hickman as they nodded. 'How are you all doing?' They had all gone through a couple of tough days.

'I could use some sleep,' Hickman answered, 'but fine otherwise. Luckily we have still time to get some sleep before we leave.'

'I'm doing fine as well,' Sebastian answered. 'Before I texted you, I talked with Erik. He might come and stay with me for a weekend...with Kathrin as well, of course...We should go, or should we wait so we can give you a ride to the hotel as well?' Tommy shook his head.

'I'm staying till the end of visiting hours and will find my way back to the hotel,' he answered. 'Probably take a taxi. Unless I'm not kicked out by any of the nurses...then I might stay here at the hospital.' Sebastian nodded and they said their goodbyes to each other.

* * *

><p>Eva was sleeping through most of the visiting hours and Tommy was still sitting in his chair. In about half an hour he would be sent out of the room and he kind of wished he could talk with Eva before that. Though he was relieved she was sleeping peacefully. He knew she would need her sleep to heal. His eyes wandered around the room, when he noticed Eva looking at him.<p>

'Hey,' he greeted her with a smile. She pushed herself up.

'I need to get out of this room,' she told him and she sounded distressed. She pushed the sheets away from her. Tommy got up from his chair and placed his hand on her arm.

'Take it easy,' he warned her.

'Tommy...I need to get out of this room, now!' she stressed to him and Tommy nodded.

'Okay...we should get you some clothes,' he said and he reached for the bag Arabela had left earlier that day. She had put some of her clothes in it until Eva could get her own clothes. 'You can't walk around in a hospital gown. Let's get you to the bathroom.' He supported her while they walked to the bathroom.

'Okay, I will be outside till you are ready,' he told her as he took a couple of steps back, giving Eva some space. Eva said nothing but closed the door. Tommy leaned against the wall, listening for any sounds from the bathroom. He could understand her need to get out. She had been locked up for several days, in the same room. Being in this room would feel like being locked up again. So he went along with she wanted; Eva was in control right now. It didn't matter that it was almost eight o'clock and starting to get dark. If she needed to get out of this room, he would get her out. It would be okay. Maybe she just needed to leave the room, not even the hospital. Alternatively, just wearing other clothes than a hospital gown would help already.

Tommy was pulled from his thoughts when he heard crying from the bathroom. He rested his ear against the door to be sure. Then he knocked on the door, waiting for a reply.

'Eva, are you okay?' he asked worriedly and he knocked again. Again no reply. 'Eva, I'm coming in, okay? Just to see if you're okay.' He carefully opened the door and was shocked when he saw her. The hospital gown was gone and it was just her in jogging pants and a bra. He had a clear view of the bruises on her torso and her bandaged shoulder, which he didn't need to see. That imagine was still in his mind. Slowly he stepped towards her. She didn't seem to notice him until he gently touched her arm. She looked at him with tears running over her cheeks, looking so scared and shocked. He soothingly stroked her arms, without saying a word. A tank top was in her hands and Tommy took it from her. While being careful of her shoulder and the bruises, he helped her to put on the top. From the bag he retrieved a thick and warm sweater and helped her put on that one as well. Then he stood in front of her, looking at her. Eva watched him with tearful eyes.

'Sei bellissima,' he whispered while he tenderly wiped her tears away. Eva gave him a weak smile and rested her head against his shoulder. He took it as permission to wrap his arms around her and he held her for moment. He placed a kiss on top her head before guiding her back to her bed, climbing on the bed himself as well. They just lay together on the bed for a while. At no moment he let her go or even thought about letting her go. It felt good to hold her. A confirmation that she was safe, both for him and her.

'We'll try again tomorrow,' he whispered to her. Eva didn't say a word and after a long time he felt her breath evening out. He became tired himself, feeling as if this was the first moment he could relax. It didn't take look before the sleep overtook him as well.

**TBC. **


	12. Chapter 12

**I don't own Crossing Lines! My native language is Dutch and I'm dyslectic so sorry for any mistakes. Thanks for all the reviews, alerts and favorites!**

**The season 3 news came from the Crossing Lines' twitter account ( crossinglinestv). They keep replying to people that there is in fact a season 3 and they will start shooting next month. I guess there will be a big announcement soon...**

_Chapter 12_

Eva woke up and missed Tommy's arms around her and his steady heartbeat in her ear. For a moment it felt like it had been just a dream and she would be in the tiny room again if she opened her eyes. Back in her prison. However, she did open her eyes and was met with the sight of someone sleeping in the chair, which didn't look too comfortable. She could barely make him out in the darkened room, but she knew it was Tommy sitting there. She didn't remember him getting out the bed. She did remember some of what had happened before them getting in one bed. It was the first time she had really seen herself; the bruises and cuts on her body. The tears had followed quickly once she had caught the first glimpse of herself. Tommy had come into the room and had said nothing. He had gotten her dressed and had told her she was beautiful. Something she hadn't been able to see for herself. All she had seen were those bruises and cuts. She remembered leaning into his embrace. He had been so gentle and caring towards her. Barely saying a word, he had given her what she needed.

Sounds came from the hallway, pulling Eva out of the memory of the night before. She looked around the hospital room. Even when it was three times as big as the tiny room, she felt locked up. After being here just one day, she wanted to leave already. But leaving also gave her a strange feeling. It would be strange to leave Italy, not knowing if she would return. It had been her home for such a long time, but right now it was a place with pained memories to her. It was no longer really her home after what her father...her father...What had happened to her father? Eva was confused by the feeling of worry that she felt for her father. It wasn't worry for her father as she knew him now, but for her father that she had known when she was just a little girl. Memories of him holding her when she was sick, made her long for him. Even with knowing how he had turned out to be. Now she had met Giovanni Vittoria, the man. He wasn't her papà. He was a stranger to her. In her head they had slowly started to separate.

* * *

><p>Tommy slowly woke up from the discomfort his muscles were feeling. The chair hadn't been very comfortable to sleep in, but the nurse had given him the choice of an uncomfortable chair or leaving. Around ten o'clock last night the nurse had walked into the room and hadn't seemed happy with the sight of Tommy in Eva's bed. She had ranted in a whisper to him about bacteria and other things and he had quietly returned to the chair. However, she did let him stay in the room, for which he was thankful.<p>

In the morning another nurse had brought them both some breakfast. While Eva had another check-up, Tommy had taken a shower. As the morning passed, Tommy felt himself getting tired. Sleeping in a chair was something he was going to avoid from now on. Eva laughed and Tommy looked up at her.

'Tommy, you can go to the hotel and get some real sleep,' she told him. 'You've been here almost all day and night.' Tommy sat up straight in the chair.

'No need: I'm not tired at all,' he told her.

'You're a bad liar. Go to the hotel.'

'Nah, won't leave you here alone,' he said and he got up from the chair. 'I just need to move around for a while. Loosening the muscles.'

'Would you want to take a walk with me?' Eva asked. 'The doctor told me to move around...stretch my legs...and I could use a different view than this room.' Tommy nodded and got the hospital slippers for Eva.

'Just take it easy,' he told her, like he had the evening before. Eva grabbed his arm for support and slowly but surely they walked around. He looked around in the corridor. 'Where should we go for our grand adventure? We have a complete hospital explore. I'm sure there is something good in here...' Eva smiled at him.

'What about a walk to the elevator?' she suggested, 'if we can make that.' Tommy stretched his arm out, gesturing her to lead the way, and they made their way over to the elevator.

'Do we want to get into the elevator and see where it takes us?' he asked, already pressing the button. 'Are you even allowed to leave the floor?'

'I think we can,' she assured him.

'Okay, get inside,' Tommy said when the elevator doors opened. 'I know there are some stores downstairs. Maybe we can find you some clothes?' Eva gave him a nod and they got into the elevator. Tommy had Eva take the folding chair in the corner and as she sat down, he could see she was happy to rest for a moment. The elevator arrived at the ground floor and Tommy and Eva walked out of it. When they passed the hospital cafeteria, Tommy changed the plans and guided them into the cafeteria, where they sat down at the table.

'We should get some supplies for energy,' he told Eva. 'Stay right here, I'll be right back.' It was quiet in the cafeteria, so Tommy could return quickly. He placed a bar of chocolate in front of Eva and he had gotten a cup of coffee for himself. Eva's face lit up when she saw the chocolate and she smiled at him.

'Thank you,' she said to him. She unwrapped the bar slowly and broke off a piece. 'Do you want a piece as well?'

'Of course,' Tommy answered and she handed him some chocolate. It was good chocolate, but Eva's content face made it even better. They ate some of the chocolate in silence until Eva looked at him.

'I'm probably allowed to leave the hospital later in the afternoon,' she told him. 'Doctor Delluci wants one more check-up and then she will decide if I can go...' She didn't seem happy about the news to Tommy.

'Do you feel ready to go back home?'

Eva shrugged. 'I'm not sure if I really know what's home anymore...' Tommy reached for her hand, while looking at her. He didn't know what to say to that so he just took her hand and started to gently rub his thumb over the back as he had done so many times now.

* * *

><p>Eva was sitting on her bed, trying to read a magazine when the door opened. She expected Tommy to return for his coffee break, but it was Vincente walking in. He was holding some flowers which he handed to her.<p>

'Grazie,' she smiled and she smelled them, 'they are beautiful.' Vincente sat down in the chair next to her bed and looked at her.

'How are you doing, Eva?' he asked and there was worry in his voice. Eva put the flowers on the side table, making a mental note to ask a nurse for a vase later, and she turned to Vincente.

'I'm doing okay,' she answered. 'Tommy told me how you helped the team...thank you for that.' Vincente took a hold of her hand.

'Don't mention it,' he told her. 'Couldn't just leave you. Even when you left us for the fancy team. I can definitely understand why you left the task force for them. They are a good team and they really seem to care about you...especially McConnel.' Eva smiled as he said that and Vincente raised his eyebrows. 'Is something going on between you two? Is he the reason you left?'

'Nothing but friendship,' Eva answered, but her mind wandered to last night and this morning when she woke up missing him right away. How safe she had felt when he held her. 'Just good friends.'

'We were good friends once,' Vincente smiled. 'But you were never like that around me...' Eva averted her gaze toward her sheets.

'What happened to my father?' she then asked and Vincente's smile disappeared.

'Don't worry about him, Eva,' he answered her firmly and he held her hand a little tighter. 'He will be locked up and won't be coming near you, ever again. I will make sure of that, okay? You just focus on getting better and being the amazing European dream team.' Eva gave him a nod and he leaned forward to give her a kiss on her forehead. 'I have to go. We're going back to Firenze. I just wanted to see how you were doing.'

'Thank you again,' Eva replied, while she held on to his hand a little longer. 'Be safe, Lorenzo.' He started to laugh.

'Anti-mafia task force seems very safe next to what your team is doing,' he said. 'So you better be safe. And don't forget to call old friends every once and awhile.' Just when Vincente was about to get up, Tommy walked into the room. The two men gave each other a short nod before they continued their path.

'Ciao, Eva,' Vincente said before he walked out of the room. 'And ciao, Tommy.' Tommy sat down in the chair and looked at her.

'You look happy,' he noted.

'It was good to see him,' Eva answered. 'Gave me a chance to thank him.'

* * *

><p>There was a knock on the door and doctor Delluci walked in. Tommy gave the woman a nod and noticed Eva nervously smiling at her. Doctor Delluci started to talk in Italian and Tommy tried to follow anything she was saying. He kind of hoped Eva would tell doctor Delluci to speak in English, but she didn't seem to plan on it. Her hand seemed to unconsciously search for his hand and he gladly took it. He glanced at her face. She looked nervous and he got worried. He really should learn Italian. Suddenly doctor Delluci reached out her hand and Eva shook it.<p>

'Goodbye, Tommy,' doctor Delluci said with a smile and Tommy nodded at her. She walked out of the room. Tommy turned to Eva right away.

'So?' he asked. 'Are you okay?'

'I'm okay to leave the hospital,' Eva answered. 'The nurse is coming in with my discharge papers soon.' Tommy noticed her toying with her sheets.

'That is good, right?' he asked carefully. Eva gave him a nod. Tommy turned to the closet in the room. 'Shall I get your bags?'

'Sure...' Eva answered. There was another knock on the door and a nurse walked into the room, holding papers. She handed them over and started to explain them in Italian, by the sound of it. Tommy walked to the closet and grabbed the bag with clothes. They were still Arabela's clothes as they hadn't gotten to getting Eva some new clothes. After their little chocolate break in the hospital cafeteria Eva had been tired and they had returned to her room. Tommy turned around and found Eva looking over the papers, her hand shaking.

'Hey, are you okay?' he asked worried, placing his hand on her shaking hand.

'Yeah,' Eva said and she sighed. 'It's just a little...scary...' She looked at him and he gave a little smile. He knew about her worries and he wished he knew a way to take them away. To him, returning home would be the best thing. Back to her own apartment, to their team - and friends-, to a place where she was loved. He wished he could make it less scary. He wanted to say that it was going to be okay, but he also knew that it wasn't going to help much.

'Come on,' Tommy said to her. 'Our ride is waiting outside.' He offered his arm for her to hold. She took it gratefully and together they walked to the nurse's station to hand in the papers. The walk to the taxi was short and in silence. He gently helped her inside and sat down beside her.

'You can decide where we go,' he said to her. 'We can go to the airport and get the first flight back to The Hague or we go to the hotel first and leave tomorrow. Your choice. Where do you want to go?' Eva looked at him in silent for a couple of minutes and Tommy wondered if he should repeat the question.

'The hotel is good for now,' she then said and Tommy gave the driver the address of the hotel. He held her hand and gave her another little smile. Eva leaned her head against his shoulder and closed her eyes. Tommy rested his head against hers and sighed.

* * *

><p>'Yes, we're both okay,' Tommy assured Sebastian over the phone. He and Eva had only arrived at the hotel forty minutes ago and Sebastian was already calling for an update. Eva had headed into the bathroom almost immediately and Tommy was left with answering his persistently ringing phone. He had hoped the rest of the day would be quiet, but he could have guessed that the rest of the team wanted an update on Eva. 'She was just released from hospital. We're going to head back tomorrow.'<p>

'_And she is doing okay?_'

'She is as good as she can be right now. She's taking a shower at the moment.' Tommy glanced at the closed bathroom door, hoping he would hear something. Something that would indicate everything was going okay. The shower was turned off. He returned his gaze to the wall opposite of the bathroom door. 'Did you guys arrive okay?'

'_Yeah, we're fine. Just some paperwork...well, a lot of paperwork to fill out. Don't worry about us...or work. We'll manage things around here. Do you need someone to pick you up tomorrow?_'

'Tommy?' Eva called from the bathroom and Tommy immediately turned around.

'Uumm...I don't think so. We might make a stop on the way back. I'll keep you posted. I have to go, Sebastian. Thank you for calling and say hi to the others.' Tommy hung up before Sebastian could reply and he knocked on the bathroom door. He waited just a couple of seconds before slowly opening it. Eva was staring at him through the mirror. His eyes fell on the red and burned V on her shoulder, even when he tried not to look. When he looked up at Eva's face, she looked ashamed. Tommy swallowed.

'What do I need to do?' he asked.

'The doctor told me to put ointment on the...umm...my shoulder,' Eva answered stumbling, 'but I can't reach it without...' Tommy had already taken the ointment from her hands and stood behind her. As gently as he could he applied the ointment on the burn and bandaged it as he had seen the nurse do.

'Do you need help with your clothing?' he asked, nodding at the pile on the bathroom floor. Just as before she had managed to put a bra and sweatpants on, but he knew putting on a shirt was painful for her, even with some help.

'If you don't mind.'

Tommy shook his head and helped her put on the top. When he saw the sweatshirt, he smiled. It was one from his bag. Eva avoided looking him in the eye while he helped her put it on.

'Are you warm enough?' he asked. Eva nodded. 'Okay, let's get you out of the bathroom.' He gently guided her to the bed and sat her down. 'Room service should be here soon with some food, because you need to eat.'

'I'm not that hungry,' Eva said and she lay down on the bed.

'You really should eat something,' he told her. 'I even got you your favorite.' Eva patted on the other side of the bed.

'You should get some rest as well,' she said. 'You have been through some rough days as well...Arabela said you left the hospital against medical advice. Your head must be killing you.' Tommy sighed and lay down beside her, turning so he would be facing her.

'You don't need to worry about me, bella,' he said to her softly and he stroked the back of her hand that was lying on the bed. 'I'm alright.'

**TBC. **


	13. Chapter 13

**I don't own Crossing Lines! My native language is Dutch and I'm dyslectic so sorry for any mistakes. Thank you for the reviews. alerts and favorites!**

_Chapter 13_

With one hand Tommy held the taxi door open and his other he offered Eva to take hold of. She gladly accepted it and got out of the taxi. As she turned to the driver, she wondered what he was thinking. Dropping a man and a woman off at a cemetery and her looking like she did, she was sure it would raise some questions. For now she was just glad their contact with other people had been limited and no one had dared to ask questions.

'Are you ready?' Tommy asked her quietly and Eva nodded. Could you really be ready, going to a cemetery? The walk to the grave wasn't long, but tiring for Eva with her injuries. She took a deep breath as they stopped in front of a fresh grave. There was no headstone yet, but the neighboring grave told them enough. _Etienne Louis Daniel_ was engraved in it. Tommy put his arm around her shoulder and she leaned into his touch. It felt wrong that they were standing at Louis' fresh grave with just the two of them. They should have been here as a team, at the funeral. A couple of tears escaped from her eyes. If she hadn't been so stupid to stay in Spain by herself, she would have been with the team on their case. Maybe then this wouldn't have happened. She glanced at Tommy, who was frowning.

'What's wrong?' she asked him and as he turned to her, the frown disappeared.

'I just don't get why she couldn't just wait a little longer,' he answered. 'Rebecca I mean. She could have given us some time to actually be there at the funeral.' Eva fell silent and gazed at the grave. Guilt was filling her mind. It was her fault that Tommy or the others couldn't have been at the funeral. Tommy gently placed his hand on her chin and turned her head towards him. 'I don't blame you, Eva.'

'I understand that Rebecca wanted to find peace for the Major,' Eva told him, not wanting to go into the blame-game. 'Why she wanted to reunite the Major with their son as soon as possible...'

'But if only she could have waited a couple of days longer...'

'You couldn't have known how long it would have take to...' Eva struggled to find the right words to explain the situation without feeling like a victim. '...locate me...'

'Hey, it wasn't your fault that we weren't here,' Tommy told her firmly. 'You needed to figure stuff out for yourself. We would all have done the same.' _If you had seen your dead father wandering around as well_, Eva added in her mind. It sounded stupid in that way. It had been stupid to go after her father without notifying anyone.

They stayed in front of the grave a little longer, both lost in their own thoughts. Tommy's arms were securely around her.

* * *

><p>After their stop in Paris, they arrived in The Hague about three and half hours later. Eva felt she was finally able to breathe again as they drove past familiar buildings. Her hand was securely intertwined with Tommy's.<p>

'Are you sure that you want to go to the office first?' Tommy asked once again. 'We can still go to your apartment first.' Eva shook her head. She wanted to see the team before going home. It felt good arriving at the ICC building. This she recognized and it had so much familiarity with it. Again Tommy helped her out of the taxi and they walked into the building. Eva made them stop at the balcony overlooking the desks and just stood there for a moment, watching the rest of the team members talk to each other. They seemed busy and it was how Eva liked arriving at work: when it was alive and something was happening. Arabela was the first to notice them.

'Eva, Tommy!' she greeted them with a smile. 'You should have called. We would have picked you up.' Tommy supported Eva as they went down the stairs to meet up with the team. Arabela gave them both a hug.

'We had a stop in Paris,' Tommy explained. 'And we didn't really knew what we would do once we got to The Hague.' Hickman and Sebastian both gave Eva a hug and Tommy a pat on his shoulder.

'It's good to have you two back,' Sebastian said. Eva smiled, a little uncomfortable, and watched as Tommy hurried off. He returned with several cups ad his flask.

'A drink for the dead,' he said while he filled a cup for everyone. When he had his own cup, he raised it. 'To the Major.' In one big gulp he drank the whiskey and the others followed.

'What is going to happen now?' Eva asked and she hoped all would know what she meant by it. They looked at each other quietly. They had lost their boss and team member. If they want to continue, someone else should join the team.

'We'll go on,' Hickman answered. 'The ICC agreed that this team is doing good work and is still necessary to exist. Dorn said there will be a new team leader appointed and someone is joining the team. He is already looking for...' Eva knew he wanted to say replacement but it sounded wrong. No one could replace the Major.

* * *

><p>Tommy opened the door to Eva's apartment and moved aside so Eva could walk inside. He watched her as she glanced around her own place, as if she had never been here before. He himself had been to her place only a couple of times and had never been inside. It was always for carpooling. Eva sat down on the couch and stared towards the wall. Tommy shifted uncomfortably at the door and cleared his throat. Her head turned around, as if she had forgotten he was standing there.<p>

'I'd better go...' he said slowly but Eva shook her head slightly.

'Please stay,' she replied softly. 'Just a little longer.' Tommy gave her a short nod and closed the door before walking to the couch. She looked at him. 'I...I just don't want to be...alone right now.'

'It's okay,' he said to her. 'I don't want to be alone right now either.'

'I think there is still some beer in the fridge...' Eva said and she already started to get up, 'and probably expired food...' Tommy smiled and put his hand on her arm, pulling her back to the couch.

'I will get it myself when I want one,' he said. 'But thank you for the offer. And I will make sure you get some fresh food tomorrow...' He watched her as she adverted her gaze. 'Eva, I want to ask you...how you are doing...but I'm not sure I can ask.' Eva returned her gaze back to him and smiled. There was a hint of sadness in her smile when it didn't reach her eyes.

'I'm okay, Tommy,' she answered. 'It...it wasn't all easy but it's okay...with you here...I would just rather not talk about it now...maybe later?' Tommy nodded and he took her hand. Both their gaze set on their hands while he rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand.

'Will you talk to someone...a professional...when you're ready?' Tommy asked the question with hesitance, not sure how Eva would take the question. He was worried he had asked the wrong question when it stayed silent and he glanced at her.

'I might,' Eva then answered and she looked up at him. 'But for now I would just want to sit here on the couch...with you.' Tommy smiled. He agreed with that. He was perfectly fine sitting next to her. Going to his own place was something he dreaded. After almost losing her, he wanted to stay close to her; make sure she was still there and alright. So this was a perfect place for him right now.

'I'm happy to just sit here,' he said to her. Eva looked him right in the eyes. For a moment they were staring into each other's eyes like there was nothing else. Almost without Tommy noticing Eva leaned towards him. He could breathe in her smell. Her smell that he had gotten so used to over the last days and already missed when she wasn't near him. It was just her and him. Then their lips met.

**The End.**

**Thank you all for staying with the story and reading it till the end! I hope you enjoyed my idea of what could happen after the season 2 finale! I know I loved writing it and reading your reviews about the story. The announcement of season 3 made it even better (and more evident that this will never happen).**

**Once again thanks to everyone who read, reviewed, favorited or put an alert on this story! **

**And a special thanks to cdub77, writing this fanfic became a whole lot more fun with you ^^ and of course to my sister (Daimee), for checking every chapter of this fanfic ^^!**


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